Specific health issues

The blood diseases sickle cell and thalassaemia, which can have a significant impact on working life, are more prevalent among people who originate from Africa, the Caribbean, the Middle East, India and the Mediterranean than others. Inclusive health and sickness absence policies should cater for workers affected.

The conditions vary in severity but some workers may need regular blood transfusions and so will sometimes be hospitalised. Another aspect impacting on working life is that affected people are likely to need regular access to fluids and to toilet breaks, and that they need to be allowed to sit down. Public service union UNISON’s 2017 Black Members’ Conference recommended that workplace policies should consider the need for:

• flexible working hours (allowing home working if necessary);

• part-time hours or job-share;

• a well-heated working environment;

• provision of water filter and or other fluids;

• the employee to be allowed to sit down (leg ulcers are a common symptom);

• the employee to be allowed time off for hospital appointments (some people might be on dialysis three times a week);

• a lift to be provided so the employee does not have to climb stairs; and

• allowance to be made for the occasional “lateness” if the employee has leg ulcers (affects walking pace) or anaemia (they get more breathless).

Clearly, the Covid-19 has disproportionately affected workers from specific ethnic backgrounds, and this is looked at in detail in Chapter 7.