More Reasonable Adjustments Red Tape for DDA

In Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals NHS Trust -v- Cambridge the EAT has held that for an employer to meet its' obligations under s.6 Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) of reasonable adjustments (and thereby defend a claim brought under the DDA) it must now make even further enquiries than was previously thought.

The EAT held that the duty to make reasonable adjustments under s6 DDA incorporated doing a full risk assessment before deciding upon the necessary reasonable adjustments. This includes obtaining a proper assessment of the employee's condition and prognosis, investigating the effect of the disability on the employee's ability to perform the role and the effect of the physical features of the workplace on the employee.

Clearly as a precursor to making reasonable adjustments, an employer will always, to some degree, need to investigate the employee's condition. Employers should note however that this case appears to extend the employer's duty (as imposed by s6) by stating that an employer shall be obliged under s6 to first undertake a full risk assessment as part of the s6 duty.

In reality, an employer's ability to obtain the necessary risk assessment information as envisaged by the EAT in this decision, will be contingent upon the employee's willingness to co-operate with the employer.
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