Case Law Update: Technician wins disability discrimination case

A technician who brought claims for unfair dismissal and discrimination arising out of his disabilities has been awarded £117,013 by  an Employment Tribunal.

The tribunal ruled that Mr D Walker, a technician at Old Swinford Hospital School, was unfairly dismissed after the school decided he could no longer perform his role because of his disability.

Another factor against the School was that it was found that it did not apply or follow its own disciplinary policy throughout the process. Indeed, there was no investigatory meeting, warning or improvement plan in place to help the Claimant.

This is a warning to Respondents in claims were it is alleged that a fair procedure is not followed. In this case of Walker v Old Swinford Hospital School, it was held that the "appeal process was a little more than an attempt to look like a correct procedure was followed".

The particular facts in this matter are briefly, that Mr Walker started working for the school in 2014. He had psoriatic arthritis, depression and anxiety. He had periods of absence throughout 2016 and in 2017, the periods of absence increased due to his worsening wellbeing (caused in part due to a change in his medication which caused nausea, dizziness and sedation).

Although a meeting with occupational health (OH) was arranged and a report drawn up with recommendations that he be restricted from operating hazardous equipment, upon his return to the school, he was back to full duties with no consideration given to making adjustments to his role.

More failings occurred including offering him other roles which would have meant lesser pay, unilaterally moving him out of his role as a technician and dismissing him without a formal meeting taking place.

In awarding the claim to the Claimant, the judge stated that the decision to dismiss Mr Walker did not take into account the short term nature of his restrictions of his improving absence and lateness record.

This case highlights how failure to carry out appropriate procedures in response to an employee with a known disability can lead to a business unsuccessfully defending a discrimination claim. 

Clear policies and procedures should be part and parcel of every business and these should be followed consistently to avoid any difficulties arising in the future.

For more information or to speak with Roy Magara,  a specialist employment lawyer at Magara Law, please call 01869 325 883 or email roy@magaralaw.co.uk. Magara law is an employment law firm based in Bicester, Oxfordshire, and services clients nationwide.