January 30, 2009
Can being a bit chilly at work be classed as a disability? That was the tricky question the Employment Appeal Tribunal had to answer in a curious case that gave Guru goosebumps upon reading.
Jobcentre Plus employee A Sawyer claimed that he was intolerant to temperatures below 27 degrees Celsius and had recurrent chest problems.
Sawyer braved the positively Arctic mid-20s temperatures of mid-August last year protected by no more than a heavy overcoat and woolly hats, only to see his alleged condition ruthlessly dismissed in the EAT.
He claimed disability discrimination when bosses took away the personal heater that he had used (along with thick underwear, outer clothing and woolly hats) to keep him nice and toasty.
In a bid to strengthen his case, Sawyer even appeared before the employment judge bundled up in a top coat and two wooly hats. However, his plea fell on muffled ears and the judge dismissed the case.
Guru dreads to think what this guy's energy bill must be if he has the heating wacked up so it's 27 degrees or warmer. And what about his colleagues sitting there sweltering beside him?
I know the English summers haven't been that great recently, but this really is ridiculous. And how did he arrive at the seemingly arbitary figure of 27 degrees? What happened if it dipped below that - did the coughing and wheezing begin?
Guru can see some sort of wheeze here, and it's not the whistling sound during breathing.
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