Mr F Amisculesei v DHL Services Limited — 2023

The respondent accepted that the claimant's left shoulder deformity was a disability and that it had knowledge of it at the relevant times. The claimant alleged that the respondent applied PCPs requiring warehouse operatives to lift loads of 10 kilograms or more, meet unloading targets, and meet a picking rate of 40 products per hour while using a scan gun.

The Tribunal found that there was no requirement for the claimant or other warehouse operatives to lift loads of 10 kilograms or more without assistance, and that colleagues could be asked to help with heavy or large items. It also accepted the respondent's evidence that there were no set picking or unloading targets of the kind alleged, although operatives working on tote picking were expected to achieve 40 products per hour; the Tribunal found this was not a formal target and that the claimant did not have difficulty meeting it.

On the dismissal, the Tribunal found that Mr Lambert dismissed the claimant because he failed to report the incident in which he said he lifted a heavy box and later had aggravated shoulder pain. The Tribunal found that this failure was not connected with something arising from the claimant's disability as pleaded, namely an alleged breakdown in relationships with managers due to alleged failures to make adjustments. The complaints of failure to make reasonable adjustments, indirect disability discrimination, and discrimination arising from disability were dismissed.