Electronic Data Systems Ltd v Travis

An Employment Tribunal assessing an employer’s duty to make reasonable adjustments must identify the substantial disadvantage caused by the employer’s arrangements and decide what steps were reasonable in all the circumstances. It need not make detailed findings on every factor in section 6(4) of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 if it is clear that the provision was considered and the issues actually raised are addressed. Training may be a reasonable adjustment where illness has left a disabled employee’s skills out of date, even if the precise course, duration and alternative post are not identified. The employer should produce evidence that no suitable alternative work was available where that information lies within its knowledge.

Dr Clive Travis, a software engineer with schizophrenia, returned to work for Electronic Data Systems Ltd after a lengthy absence. His IT skills were out of date and his security clearance was limited. He was placed in a non-revenue-producing role and was later dismissed during a redundancy exercise. The Employment Tribunal found that the employer had failed to take reasonable steps under section 6 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, including training to update his skills. The Employment Appeal Tribunal upheld the discrimination finding and part of the unfair dismissal decision. The employer appealed to the Court of Appeal on the adequacy, practicability and detail of the proposed training adjustment.

1. Appeal dismissed. Lord Justice Keene gave the leading judgment. Lord Justices Wall and Neuberger agreed.
2. The duty under section 6(1) of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 required the employer to take such steps as were reasonable in all the circumstances to prevent its arrangements placing Dr Travis at a substantial disadvantage. Any breach remained subject to justification under section 5(2), but no issue concerning justification was pursued on the appeal.
3. The Tribunal had expressly set out section 6(4). The extent to which it had to spell out findings on each listed factor depended on how controversial those matters were. It was sufficient that the Tribunal had section 6(4) in mind and dealt with the issues raised. An exhaustive factor-by-factor analysis was unnecessary.
4. The Tribunal was entitled to identify training to bring Dr Travis’s IT skills up to date as a reasonable adjustment. It did not need to specify the precise content or duration of the training. The argument that training would have been ineffective because of limited security clearance was unsupported by adequate evidence. The decision in Archibald v Fife Council [2004] IRLR 197, on which the employer relied, had been reversed by the House of Lords in Archibald v Fife Council 2004 UKHL 32; the latter decision recognised that suitable alternative posts and reasonable retraining might require consideration.
5. Where the availability of alternative employment lies principally within the employer’s knowledge, the employer should call evidence that no alternative employment was available. The Court approved and applied the approach in Conoco Ltd v Booth. There was no evidence that updated skills would not have enabled Dr Travis to avoid redundancy.
6. The reliance on Meek v Birmingham DC [1987] IRLR 250 added nothing because the alleged failure to give reasons merely repeated the substantive challenge. The Tribunal was entitled to find that the employer had failed to take reasonable steps and had thereby breached its section 6 duty.

The appeal was dismissed. The appellant was ordered to pay the respondent’s costs, summarily assessed at £8,000 plus VAT.

• Court of Appeal (Civil Division): dismissed the employer’s appeal from the Employment Appeal Tribunal and ordered payment of £8,000 plus VAT in costs.
• Employment Appeal Tribunal: upheld the Employment Tribunal’s finding of disability discrimination and, in part, its finding of unfair dismissal. The decision was sent to the parties on 17 March 2004.
• Employment Tribunal: found that the employer had failed to take reasonable steps under section 6 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, including training to update the employee’s skills.