EAT (Disability Discrimination: Disability Related Discrimination) The Claimant alleged discrimination arising from disability under section 15 Equality Act 2010. He raised six complaints.
In relation to five of them there was no issue as to their factual basis and the Employment Tribunal was satisfied that they amounted to unfavourable treatment. The issue for the Employment Tribunal was whether the treatment in each case was ‘because of something arising in consequence of [the Claimant’s] disability’.
The Employment Tribunal decided that causation was established in relation to the five complaints. However, they considered causation in relation to all five complaints together rather than looking at each of them separately; they did not ask themselves what the subjective reason for the Respondent’s treatment of the Claimant was; and they did not clearly distinguish and address the two elements in the causation test (‘because of something’ and ‘arising in consequence’). They did not therefore follow the proper approach outlined in Pnaiser v NHS England [2016] IRLR 170 and did not analyse the causation issues as they should have.
A proper approach may have led to a different conclusion as to causation. The appeal was therefore allowed and the five section 15 complaints remitted to a fresh Employment Tribunal.
Shanks HHJ
[2016] UKEAT 0194 – 16 – 2411
Bailii
England and Wales
Employment
Updated: 26 January 2022; Ref: scu.572022
