Case
Update: Disability and Reasonable Adjustments
Foster
v Cardiff University was considered by the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT)
recently. The issues were reasonable adjustments for chronic fatigue syndrome
and how stress and anxiety affect that condition. Foster claimed stress and
anxiety aggravated her condition and that work was causing this.
The employment
tribunal dismissed the claimant’s disability discrimination and harassment
claims. In her appeal to the EAT, the claimant argued that:
·
the tribunal made a mistake in not having regard to the effect that
anxiety and stress had on her disability; and
·
the tribunal was wrong to conduct a comparison exercise between the
claimant and a person who did not have her disability
The EAT held that the
tribunal did not have to look at the cause of the disability, only its affect.
In this instance the disability was chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety and
stress were the triggers, but were not part of the disability itself. There was
no requirement for the tribunal to investigate the cause of the disability,
This decision is a
helpful reminder that tribunals are not required to look into the cause of a
disability. Therefore, on this analysis, a claimant suffering with liver
disease caused by alcohol addiction would bring a claim for disability due to
the liver disease. Even though alcohol addiction is the cause, the claimant could
rely on the subsequent disease. Any such claimant would not however be able to
rely on alcohol addiction as the impairment itself.
The EAT also took the
opportunity to clarify that the correct comparator in reasonable adjustment
cases is a person who does not have the relevant disability.
Elissa Thursfield
