ME sufferer wins claim for disability discrimination

A worker with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has won her claim for unfair dismissal, victimisation and disability discrimination.

Julie Pine was made redundant from her job as a database administrator by buyout investment company Cinven in December 2006.

An Employment Tribunal found she was not dismissed because of her disability but because there was no longer any work for her to do. However, the Tribunal ruled that the company failed to make reasonable adjustments for her disability and did not follow procedures when they were dismissing her.

They criticised Cinven for failing to give her the opportunity of part-time or home work, when some of her roles came to an end while she was on long-term sick leave.

CFS, which is also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), is a long-term tiredness that does not go away as a result of sleep or rest.

Chairwoman of the panel, Elizabeth Potter, says:

"The Tribunal's conclusion is of unfair dismissal. The claimant was not offered an alternative to redundancy. The company did not explore the possibility of part-time work, explore working from home. There were a number of things that could have been explored which were not."

The panel found Pine had been victimised because the company engaged in "delays and evasive behaviour" in not providing her with a copy of their Critical Illness Policy.

It said the employers regarded her redundancy as a 'fait accompli' without giving her fair warning that her work was drying up.

The Employment Tribunal also cleared Cinven and one of its employees of harassment by gossiping and discussing Pine's illness in public, ruling that employees only talked about her sick leave in practical terms.

Pine's lawyer, Richard Woodman, said his client was "relieved and delighted" at the verdict. The Tribunal has not yet made any decisions about possible compensation.

A spokesman for Cinven said:

"We are pleased that no harassment or direct discrimination on grounds of disability has been upheld and our constant case that Julie Pine was dismissed by being made redundant has been upheld.

"We are undertaking a full review of all our employment procedures and hope that we can learn from this episode and move on."