EAT Overrules Tribunal On Disability Case

Employers in the transport and logistics sector should take heed of a recent EAT decision, Cunningham v British Broadcasting Corporation, in which a claimant’s appeal was allowed on two grounds, finding that the original Tribunal erred in concluding that the BBC was not aware of the employee’s disability, and also disagreeing as to whether there had been adequate evaluation of the need for adjustments.

This case is an excellent reminder of where information held by an employer can result in a finding that they had ‘constructive knowledge’ of an employee’s disability, essentially being sign-posted to the fact that further enquires should have taken place. Whilst the case related to the BBC, it is common in the transport and logistics sector for employers to have limited contact with some of their employees than might otherwise occur in different sectors. For example, a night-shift driver might not see their manager regularly, or similarly a driver who is away for days at a time, hence