Mr E Osifo v British Gas Trading Limited — 2017

The claimant was dismissed on capability grounds after periods of sickness absence connected with stress, anxiety and depression. His condition was ultimately conceded to be a disability. The tribunal accepted that capability was the reason operating on the dismissing manager's mind, but found the dismissal unfair because the respondent had relied on limited occupational health material, had not sought GP or fuller medical evidence, included older absence history of doubtful relevance, and denied the claimant an appeal in circumstances the tribunal considered unreasonable.

The tribunal found that the dismissal was discrimination arising from disability. It accepted the respondent's pleaded aim of managing health and attendance across the business, but concluded dismissal was not a proportionate means of achieving that aim. The tribunal relied on similar factors to the unfair dismissal finding, including the limited medical investigation, the lack of proactive exploration of alternative roles, the remaining sick pay period, and the failure to investigate whether a six-month period of inactivity might result in a new or rebuilt system profile.

The tribunal also upheld the reasonable adjustments complaint. The relevant PCP was the respondent's requirement that the claimant personally attend work and test his AWB log-in rather than permitting another person to test it. The tribunal found that the respondent had not called direct technical evidence to establish that a controlled one-off test by someone else could not reasonably have been done, and held that this aspect of the claim succeeded.