Marvin OnumonuHalf of UK workers with multiple sclerosis (MS) said they had to stay in jobs that made their condition worse, according to a report from the Work Foundation at Lancaster University and MS Society.
The survey asked over 1,000 people with MS about their work experiences and found a third (31%) were working in roles below their skill level.
The report showed half (50%) of people with MS had left a job at some point because of their condition.
A quarter (28%) who had left work said better Government support, such as improved benefits, would have helped them stay in employment.
Nearly a third (26%) said better employee benefits, including occupational sick pay, would have supported them to remain in work.
Meanwhile, 45% said more understanding of MS from employers would have helped them stay, while 41% said proper workplace adjustments, such as working from home or more frequent breaks, would have made a difference.
More than half (55%) of those surveyed had received Personal Independence Payments (PIP), with 41% currently in work.
The report said Government plans to cut PIP could affect people with MS’s ability to continue working.
Ben Harrison, director of the Work Foundation at Lancaster University, said: “With the right support from Government and employers, many people with MS can continue to lead productive and fulfilling working lives.
“Our research stresses the importance of employers proactively strengthening their understanding of the condition while ensuring that line managers are equipped to properly support colleagues with MS.
“In particular, effective flexible working policies can make the difference between someone with MS feeling able to remain in work without compromising their health, or exiting the labour market altogether.”
Harrison added: “And the reality is many also rely on Government support to remain in employment – including via Personal Independence Payments.
“It’s critical that the Government re-thinks its plans to cut back and limit access to these welfare payments, as doing so could actually lead to fewer people with conditions like MS feeling able to enter and remain in work in the future.”
Ross Barrett, policy manager at the MS Society, said: “This stark new research shows many people with MS are leaving work before they want or need to, or are feeling forced to compromise their health due to financial pressures.
“Everyone with MS deserves the opportunity to thrive at work and realise their full potential, but a lack of support from employers and the government is making this impossible.
“Living with MS can be debilitating, exhausting and unpredictable – not to mention expensive.
“But access to PIP allows people to meet their extra costs, like visits from carers to help with things like washing, cooking and getting to work in the morning.”
Barrett added: “We’re calling on the UK Government to rethink and reverse their proposed welfare cuts, and focus on conducting a full review of PIP and the wider social security system so it better supports people with MS in and out of work.”
