Disability Discrimination - Knowledge of Disability

Under the Equality Act 2010, an employee is protected against discrimination if they have a disability. However, when are you reasonably expected to know that an employee is disabled?

In the case of Godfrey v NatWest Market plc, the claimant had previously been employed by NatWest Market plc and was applying for various roles that they were advertising. They were not appointed for any of the roles - the claimant argued that this was due to their need for "quiet and space" and the fact that they experienced difficulty engaging with others socially. They claimed that this was due to their diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.

The claimant was not diagnosed with autism until long after they had left the employment of the company, so the company argued that they could not have known. When reviewing the facts, the Employment Tribunal found that there was no evidence that the respondent should have considered Godfrey's behaviour evidence of a disability. Although colleagues had described Godfrey as "odd", "strange", or "sensitive", without knowledge of their diagnosis they would have no reason to believe that this was due to autism.

As a result, the claimant was not successful. This highlights that whilst you are expected to make adjustments for disabled employees and protect disabled applicants from discrimination, this only applies where you can reasonably be expected to know that they are disabled.

For further HR advice or guidance in relation to the topic above, get in touch with the Lansbury HR Consultants. We are here to support businesses nationally and locally in Burton-on-Trent, Swadlincote, and Derby.