UK disability discrimination law and stammering / stuttering
Allan Tyrer The employment tribunal found that the claimant’s stammer was not a disability within the Equality Act. The burden of proof was on the claimant, and he had not presented sufficient evidence to show that his stammer had a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. That was supported … Read more
The claimant had a stammer and type II diabetes. He was dismissed after a probationary period. Issues were his attendance, communication style (eg tending to argue, upset people), and pace of work. The employment tribunal rejected his claims for race and disability discrimination. As regards his stammer, the tribunal found that criticisms of his communication … Read more
The claimant’s current role in the NHS involved many phone calls, and his employer had allowed reasonable adjustments in respect of his stammer. Another NHS employer withdrew its job offer for a role which was similar (albeit the calls could be more challenging), saying it could not accommodate his stammer as regards difficulties speaking on … Read more
It’s good to talk about a stammer, but is there a better term than “disclosing”? In any event, I don’t think this matters legally. Stamma’s Blog: The trouble with ‘disclosure’ (6 Feb 2023) suggests that although talking about a stammer is good, “disclosing” may not be the best way to describe doing so. The term … Read more
Appearing in court Major update of Appearing in court with a stammer, including witnesses, defendants, litigants and jurors who stammer. It reflects the updated Equal Treatment Bench Book for judges which now (from February 2021) includes stammering. Two new sections are Case examples of adjustments for stammering in court and Remote hearings. Video chat backgrounds … Read more
A man with Down’s Syndrome received social care from his local council, under Scottish legislation. The council had a policy on what disability-related expenditure it would deduct in assessing his ability to pay charges for his care. The Supreme Court held that the failure of the council to adopt a more generous approach on this … Read more
Swimming in an open air pond on Hampstead Heath helped the claimant’s disability. A new system of prices to swim in the pond was introduced. Her claims for reasonable adjustments and indirect disability discrimination in relation to these charges failed. The disadvantage she suffered did not have the necessary causal connection with her disability or … Read more
Connection of employment with Great Britain Major update and review of Connection of employment with Great Britain, including later cases, and updated for Brexit. Status of University of Law Added 2020 decision by the Court of Appeal in Nwabueze v University of Law Ltd. The court held that a student could not claim against the … Read more
Retained EU law Bill: changes affecting EqA A Bill published in September 2022 would alter the position of EU law and EU Court decisions in Britain. It may well reduce Equality Act protection in some areas, particularly from 1st Jan 2024. More: Retained EU Law Bill. In connection with that, EU Framework Employment Directive also … Read more
Automated telephone services: RCSLT statement The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) has issued a Position statement on automated telephone services, including voice recognition which cannot recognise stammering. Among other things, the statement makes the point that people who communicate differently or with difficulty (including people who stammer) should be involved in the … Read more