Duty to redeploy

Difolco v NTL Group Ltd CA SJ 27 October

The employer appealed against the decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal that it had failed to make a reasonable adjustment in respect of the respondent employee contrary to s6(1) of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. Following an accident at work, the employee suffered partial paralysis and was a disabled person within the meaning of the Act. She returned to work on a part-time basis. She was subsequently selected for redundancy and was informed by the employer of alternative employment, albeit a full-time post with a competitive selection procedure. The employee was informed that if successful, the employer might consider employing her in that role on a part-time basis. The EAT upheld the tribunal’s decision that the employee had suffered ‘a substantial disadvantage’ within the meaning of s6(1), the employer should have considered whether the alternative role could have been part-time, and, if so, to have offered it to the employee without the need for a competitive selection procedure.