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High Quality Lifestyles Ltd v Watts (UKEAT/067/05/ZT)
Justification of discrimination - direct discrimination - disability related discrimination - the comparator - reasonable adjustments - treatment of person infected with transmissible disease
The Claimant was a care worker who was dismissed from his job because of the risk of transmission of the disease to other persons. He claimed direct discrimination, disability related discrimination and discrimination by a failure to make a reasonable adjustment.
The EAT held that since the Claimant was dismissed because of the risk of transmission and not because he had HIV, that the Respondent could not be found to have directly discriminated against the Claimant contrary to section 3 A(5) of the DDA. The EAT also found that the correct comparator for a person with HIV must also have:
"some attribute, whether caused by a medical condition or otherwise, which is not HIV+. This attribute must carry the same risk of causing to others illness or injury of the same gravity, here serious possibly fatal."