“Employment tribunal rules that obesity ‘is a disability’,” 10 Feb 2015

Obese workers in Northern Ireland can now qualify for protection under disability discrimination laws, an employment tribunal has ruled. In a landmark ruling…the tribunal found [that a former Randox Laboratories employee] had been discriminated against because of his weight. The decision follows on from a similar finding in the European Court of Justice that a male childminder in Denmark was unfairly sacked for being too fat. In…2014, the…court…found that if obesity was hindering “full and effective participation” at work then it [was] a disability. In the Randox case, the tribunal found that the claimant had suffered “sustained harassment and bullying,”…associated with this obesity. The…company carried out an internal investigation and a member of staff was…dismissed…Randox…said:..“We are aware of the new strand of discrimination that this case law has introduced and Randox continues to be an employer committed to ensuring zero tolerance on any form of discrimination.”