A British Airways flight attendant of 40 years has won her discrimination case against the airline after she was sacked for being unable to fly.
At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, hundreds of BA flights were grounded, which meant workers like Jennifer Clifford were unsure when they would return back to work.
Clifford said BA made a U-turn after telling her in August 2020 that she was going to be made redundant, with the airline going on to offer her a role as cabin crew - two grades below her previous rank.
An employment tribunal in Reading, Berkshire, heard that this led to her suffering from stress and depression during that period, and she was subsequently put on furlough and sick leave.
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Having worked at the company since 1983 without ever having a period of sick leave, she asked BA if they would consider a phased return.
Clifford requested that they move her to Gatwick Airport instead of her normal base at Heathrow because it would help with her commuting time. She also inquired about the possibility of working on the ground two days a week.
During this time, her manager Nigel Landy allegedly referred to her mental health condition as 'just a little bit of anxiety'.
After temporarily working a ground role when she came back, she was fired at the end of 2022 because she was still unable to fly.
Her official contract was set to be terminated in March 2023, but instead, Clifford decided to leave in December 2022.
The former flight attendant has now successfully sued BA for disability discrimination and unfair dismissal. Although her additional claim of sex discrimination was dismissed.
"Ms Clifford needed a phased return in a ground duties placement before returning to her full contractual flying role," Employment Judge Emma Hawksworths said.
"That was because of the need to rebuild her confidence and to give time to adjust to working again, and these requirements arose from her disability.
"She remained unable, because of anxiety and depression, to return to her flying role when required to do so by [British Airways] at the end of the resourcing and recruitment placement."
Hawksworths said that Landy was acting in a 'clumsy' way after 'minimising her condition'.
"It came across as an attempt to dismiss how she was feeling," the judge explained. "[Ms Clifford] had very long service with [BA]. She had had a lengthy period of absence from work, in part because of things for which she was not responsible: a long period of furlough and a long period when the respondent was considering her grievance.
"A reasonable employer would have given her a longer and more suitable phased return and would, in line with its policy, have considered redeployment to a ground based role before deciding to dismiss her."
LADbible has contacted BA for comment.
Anish Vij