The duty to make reasonable adjustments in the recruitment process  

10 October 2023

In the recent case of AECOM Ltd v Mallon the Employment Tribunal and latterly the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT); held that requiring job applications via an online form, put a job applicant with dyspraxia at a substantial disadvantage and triggered the employers duty to make reasonable adjustments.

A job applicant emailed his CV to the HR department and requested to make an oral application due to him having dyspraxia, the company contacted Mr Mallon requesting him to complete the online application and asked what he was having difficulty with. Mr Mallon did not inform the company what he was having difficulty with but this was in relation to creating a username and password.

The EAT upheld the tribunals decision that the company had sufficient knowledge of the disadvantage that Mr Mallon was experiencing and was therefore was under a duty to make reasonable adjustments; despite the company not knowing what difficulty Mr Mallon was facing. The Tribunal went on to state that a reasonable employer would have contacted the applicant requesting further details about the difficulty they were facing with the online application and that given Mr Mallon’s difficulty was with written communications, it was not reasonable to expect him to explain the issues over email.

This case serves as a reminder for employers to consider the impact of a disability; including in the recruitment process and when and where appropriate make adaptations for individuals, as the duty to make reasonable adjustments includes the recruitment process.

Please contact one of our employment team here should you have any questions on the impact of the above.