The duty to make reasonable adjustments for a disabled person under ss.20-21 Equality Act 2010. Environment Agency v Rowan; Griffiths v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
Disability; knowledge; an employer is not liable for failure to make adjustments if they did not know of the disability.
Reasonable adjustments; the duty is confined to job-related matters, adjustments to the way the job is structured and organised. It does not extend to providing a carer to attend to the personal needs of a disabled employee.
Disability; adjustments; the tribunal must assess if the adjustment would have been effective.
Reasonable adjustments; the duty to make adjustments rests with the employer, not the employee. The fact that neither the claimant nor her GP could suggest adjustments does not absolve the employer if it gave no thought to the matter itself.
Disability; adjustments; claimants must suggest a specific adjustment.
Reasonable adjustments; failure to consult a disabled employee about adjustments is not per se a breach of the duty, but may be highly relevant evidence of an unreasonable failure to make adjustments, as it implies a lack of consideration by the employer.
Disability; knowledge; the employer must know (or should reasonably know) of the disability.
Disability; adjustments; the tribunal cannot dictate *which* adjustment to make, only that *an* adjustment was required.
Reasonable adjustments; structured approach requiring identification of (1) the PCP or physical feature, (2) the identity of non-disabled comparators, and (3) the nature and extent of the substantial disadvantage. A tribunal must identify these before assessing what adjustments are reasonable.
Reasonable adjustments; knowledge; limitation. The Court of Appeal held that an employer cannot escape the duty to make reasonable adjustments by pleading ignorance of the specific adjustment required if the general nature of the disability and the disadvantage it causes were known. The time limit for presenting a reasonable adjustments claim runs from the point at which the employer might reasonably have been expected to comply with the duty.
Disability; reasonable adjustments; comparative exercise. The EAT (Cox J) held that the comparative exercise required in a reasonable adjustments claim, involving a class or group of non-disabled comparators, differs from the individual like-for-like comparison used in direct discrimination claims. A claimant need not identify a specific non-disabled comparator in otherwise identical circumstances; the facts will often speak for themselves and the identity of comparators will be clearly discernible from the PCP in issue. The Tribunal is only required to specify the identity of comparators where it is appropriate to do so. Further, a dismissal that is itself an unlawful failure to make reasonable adjustments renders a separate disability-related discrimination claim otiose.
Reasonable adjustments; substantial disadvantage is assessed objectively; a claimant's subjective feelings about their situation, including a positive attitude or willingness to cope, do not determine whether the PCP places them at a substantial disadvantage compared with non-disabled persons.
Disability; adjustments; the duty to adjust does not extend to excusing misconduct.
Disability; reasonable adjustments; transport providers must make reasonable adjustments for wheelchair users.
Reasonable adjustments; where multiple adjustments interact or might work in combination, the tribunal must adopt a holistic approach when considering their reasonableness overall rather than assessing each in isolation.
Disability; adjustments; it is not a reasonable adjustment to create a new job for a disabled employee (but see Archibald).
Disability; reasonable adjustments; absence triggers; attendance management policies can place disabled employees at a substantial disadvantage even if applied 'equally'.
Reasonable adjustments; the comparison exercise under s.20(3) EqA tests whether the PCP has the effect of producing the relevant disadvantage as between disabled and non-disabled persons. There is no requirement to identify a comparator group in the same circumstances. Whether substantial disadvantage exists is assessed on an objective basis by comparison with what the position would be if the disabled person did not have a disability.
Reasonable adjustments; the duty to make reasonable adjustments begins as soon as the employer can take reasonable steps to avoid the relevant disadvantage. The time limit for proceedings runs from the end of the period in which the employer might reasonably have been expected to comply.
Reasonable adjustments; PCPs must be formulated in general terms applicable to all employees, not specific to the individual claimant. A PCP framed too narrowly around a particular claimant's circumstances may mask the substantial disadvantage suffered.
Reasonable adjustments; the EAT allowed the appeal where the ET had failed to provide any objective assessment of the effect of the claimant's disabilities on her performance, rendering its conclusion on substantial disadvantage insufficient. The fact that the claimant had not previously requested adjustments was 'of limited relevance' as the question is an objective one for the tribunal. Remitted to a fresh ET.
Disability; reasonable adjustments; failure to offer a trial period in an alternative role can be a failure to make adjustments.
Reasonable adjustments; carrying out an assessment as to what adjustments might be made is not, of itself, capable of amounting to a reasonable adjustment. The adjustment must itself remove or alleviate the disadvantage.
Reasonable adjustments; endorsed Tarbuck, a failure to obtain and consult on a medical report before dismissal does not of itself breach the duty to make reasonable adjustments. The duty is not an end in itself.