Dyslexic employee compensated for disability discrimination

A dyslexic employee who was subjected to disability discrimination at work has been awarded £6,000 compensation.

 The problem first arose when the man started to find his job increasingly stressful and was placed on a performance improvement plan by his employer.

He later developed depression and had to take time off work. He raised a grievance that his employer had failed to make reasonable adjustments for him. He then resigned and brought a claim for disability discrimination.

The employment tribunal found in his favour. It said that the imposition of the performance improvement plan had placed him at a disadvantage in comparison with non-disabled workers. It also added that the employer had failed to carry out a workplace assessment for dyslexia and had therefore failed in its duty to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the employee and his disability.

The case went to the Employment Appeal Tribunal where the man’s compensation was set at £4,000 for the injury to his feelings and a further £2,000 for the psychiatric injury he suffered.

Please contact Robert Bedford or John Carter if you would like more information about the issues raised in this article or any aspect of employment law.