A disability is defined by Section 1(1) Disability Discrimination Act 1995  to be a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on an individual’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Whilst various conditions do fall within the definition of a disability, there are certain conditions that fall outside the scope of the statutory definition, such as an individual who is addicted to drugs or alcohol.

Employers may have individuals within their workforce suffering from substance abuse, whether it is known or unknown to them. However, it is important for employers to be aware that an employee who is an addict, whether it is to alcohol, drugs or nicotine, is not deemed as disabled under statute.

However, there is a key distinction that all employers should be aware of in relation to addiction and disability. Whilst addiction itself does not constitute a disability, an impairment that is a result of your addiction could, if satisfying each of the four factors of the disability definition, constitute a disability. For example, liver disease caused by alcohol addiction, mental illness caused by drug addiction and emphysema caused by nicotine addiction. Whilst the cause of these impairments is addiction, it is irrelevant in the context of whether the resulting impairment is a disability.

Furthermore, employers should be conscious that addiction that has been catalysed by medical treatment or medically prescribed drugs has the possibility of constituting a disability under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.