Following the recent ruling of the highest court in the European Union, employees who are fired because of their weight issues may be able to sue their bosses for unfair dismissal and disability discrimination if their weight hinders or limits them at work.
The decision by the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) to extend discrimination laws to include obesity followed their hearing of the case of Karsten Kaltoft, who sued the town of Billund, Denmark, after he was dismissed from his post in 2010. The Danish courts asked the European Court to clarify whether obesity was a disability. They will now have to assess Mr Kaltoft’s weight to see if his case can be classed as a disability. According to the World Health Organisation, obesity has reached ‘epidemic proportions globally’ with at least 2.8 million dying each year as a result of being overweight or obese.
What does this mean for employers? The ECJ’s ruling implies that if an obese employee, whose weight hinders their performance at work, is entitled to disability protection. There could be far reaching implications to service providers such as shops, restaurants and cinemas, who may also have to make reasonable provision in the form of special seating arrangements for overweight customers.
Paul Burton, Employment Associate says, “The ECJ has ruled that if the obesity of the worker ‘hinders the full and effective participation of that person in professional life on an equal basis with other workers’ then obesity can fall within the concept of disability. It is estimated that one in four people in the UK is classified as obese.”
We have offices in the Christchurch, New Milton and the New Forest. Our Employment team also cover Bournemouth and Poole. For a free initial chat, please call 01202 499255 and Paul or a member of the team will be happy to discuss any questions that you may have.
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