The Employment Appeal Tribunal has confirmed in a recent case that
whilst obesity itself is not considered to be an
“impairment” for disability discrimination purposes, if
the individual suffers from a number of physical and mental
conditions then it is possible that they could be classed as being
disabled. Therefore, the duty on an employer to make reasonable
adjustments to the employee’s role could arise. Reema Jethwa
from our Employment Team looks at the case in further
detail.
In the case of Walker v Sita Information Networking Computing
Ltd, Mr Walker suffered from a number of different conditions
such as asthma, dyslexia, joint problems, depression, diabetes,
poor concentration and chronic fatigue syndrome. The combination of
these various conditions resulted in him suffering significantly in
his day-today life. As the Employment Tribunal was unable to
attribute the symptoms to a single recognisable physical or mental
clause, the Employment Tribunal regarded his condition to be linked
to his obesity as he weighed around 137 kilograms. For this reason,
the Employment Tribunal held that he was not disabled.
This decision was overturned by the Employment Appeal Tribunal on
the basis that the Employment Tribunal should have regard to the
effect of the various impairments on the individual rather than
focussing on the cause. In fact, the Employment Appeal Tribunal
held that Mr Walker was both physically and mentally impaired and
had been for a long time. Although the Employment Appeal Tribunal
overturned the original decision, they reiterated that obesity
itself is not a disability, however employers should be aware that
it may make it more likely that an individual is disabled.
What does this mean for employers?
This case confirms that although obesity itself is not a
disability, this does not mean that employers can rely on this to
avoid their duty to make reasonable adjustments to an
employee’s role. Particularly if the employee is suffering
from a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and
long-term adverse effect on the employee’s ability to carry
out normal day-to-day activities. When assessing whether an
employee is disabled or not, it is important to focus on the effect
of the impairment rather than the cause - especially where the
employee is suffering from various physical and mental problems
which is compounded by their obesity.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.