Asthmatic civil servant shamed over sick leave, tribunal told

A civil servant, who suffers from asthma, was forced to endure a “walk of shame” because of his poor attendance record, an industrial tribunal heard today.

Martin Burns, 42, from Belfast, has accused his employers the Social Security Agency of disability discrimination, claiming they failed to take into account his chronic illness.

Giving evidence on the first day of a two-day hearing, Mr Burns said the disciplinary practices of the Belfast Benefit Centre were designed to humiliate regular absentees.

“You are paraded down the office with your line manager. It’s like a walk of shame. Other people’s attitude was to laugh it off but it is humiliating,” he said.

The tribunal heard that Mr Burns was given informal and formal warnings by management because of his sickness levels.

He argued that the informal warning was inappropriate and appealed through his trade union NIPSA.

When the formal warning was given, he issued tribunal proceedings.

“I highlighted that my asthma was the main problem but it didn’t matter,” he said.

He accused the Social Security Agency of failing to take into consideration the Disability Discrimination Act, when dealing with his case.

The Act requires employers to make reasonable adjustments to their procedures when dealing with people with disabilities.

He argued the Agency refused to discount his asthma-related absences when calculating his attendance record.

Mr Burns was examined by the Occupational Health Service to establish whether he was covered by the Disability Discrimination Act.

It found that he suffered from “minimal disablement” and was therefore protected by legislation.

Mr Burns said management had told him that they would treat his periods of absences on their own merits.

“It left me in a situation where I felt vulnerable. They could cherry-pick the days they chose to disregard, which would leave me in a dodgy position,” he added.

The Agency denies discrimination, arguing it is not a reasonable adjustment to exclude all absences that are asthma-related from its managing attendance procedures.

The hearing continues.