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Discrimination case makes history | Discrimination case makes history |
(20 minutes later) | |
A woman from Warrenpoint has made history in a landmark discrimination case in which the House of Lords clarified the UK's Disability Law. | A woman from Warrenpoint has made history in a landmark discrimination case in which the House of Lords clarified the UK's Disability Law. |
Elizabeth Boyle, who suffers from vocal nodules agreed the sum of £125,000 from her former employer, SCA Packaging Ltd. | Elizabeth Boyle, who suffers from vocal nodules agreed the sum of £125,000 from her former employer, SCA Packaging Ltd. |
Ms Boyle brought the case after the company changed her working environment which would have threatened her voice. | Ms Boyle brought the case after the company changed her working environment which would have threatened her voice. |
The ruling means more people with controlled, recurring conditions are covered by disability law. | |
It extends protection from discrimination to people with a range of health conditions where symptoms can be managed or may fluctuate. | |
This could include conditions such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. | This could include conditions such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. |
Background noise | |
Ms Boyle was employed by SCA Packaging Limited as a stock controller at their Warrenpoint factory. | |
She suffered from difficulties with her vocal chords from 1974. | |
Her condition required surgery, speech therapy and a strict management regime to ensure the problems did not recur. | Her condition required surgery, speech therapy and a strict management regime to ensure the problems did not recur. |
This involved limiting the use of her voice, staggering telephone calls, avoiding dusty atmospheres, speaking quietly and reducing background noise. | |
At a time when Ms. Boyle was following her health management regime rigorously and was symptom free, her employer sought to remove a partition separating her office from a stock control room. | At a time when Ms. Boyle was following her health management regime rigorously and was symptom free, her employer sought to remove a partition separating her office from a stock control room. |
She believed that the increased noise levels would have a substantial adverse effect on her health. | |
Victimisation | |
In October 2001 she began proceedings under the Disability Discrimination Act alleging discrimination on grounds of her employer's failure to make reasonable adjustments for her disability. | |
This has been a nine-year battle that caused so much stress to me and my family Elizabeth Boyle | |
In May 2002, after 33 years service, she was made redundant and, arising from this decision, she brought further proceedings alleging victimisation and unfair dismissal. | |
Her legal battle went as far as the Court of Appeal in Belfast before ending up in the House of Lords, then the UK's highest court. | |
The Lords' judgment, which upheld the Court of Appeal ruling, focused on circumstances where a worker's medical condition is controlled or not current but could recur if the working environment changes. | |
Previously the law stated that an employer only had to make reasonable adjustments if the chance of recurrence was "more probable than not". | |
This definition has now be altered so bosses need to take action if the return of the medical problem "could well happen". | |
In effect this has lowered the legal threshold at which employers have a responsibility. | |
Speaking after the settlement, Ms Boyle said: "This has been a nine-year battle that caused so much stress to me and my family. | Speaking after the settlement, Ms Boyle said: "This has been a nine-year battle that caused so much stress to me and my family. |
"However, because of the ruling made in my case, other disabled people can benefit too." | |
The bulk of SCA Packaging's operations in Ireland and the UK were sold off in 2008 and the Warrenpoint factory where Ms Boyle worked is now under new ownership. | |
A spokesman for the new owners - SAICA PACK - said they had no involvement in the case | |