Pub worker sued for disability discrimination claiming the Henry hoover she had been given to clean up was too heavy

A pub worker sued for disability discrimination after claiming the Henry hoover she had been given to clean up with was too heavy.

Lynn Taylor complained after her second shift that she had a bad shoulder and the classic British vacuum cleaner she was provided with was too heavy.

The arthritis sufferer said she should have been given an 'upright' model and also complained about the mop she had to use, an employment tribunal heard.

Pub owner Ainslie Richards fired her the next day from The Coach House Bar and Restaurant, at Hoddom Castle in Scotland, because cleaning was part of the job.

Ms Taylor then sued Ms Richards' business for disability discrimination.

The tribunal dismissed her Henry hoover claim, ruling that the vacuum would have been just as light as an upright one.

However, Ms Taylor did win almost £3,000 as the panel ruled she was fired without any proper process over concerns about her health.

The hearing in Glasgow was told Ms Taylor had been employed by the previous owners of The Coach House before Ms Richards took it over at the start of this year - and that she sued them as well.

Ms Taylor applied in January this year and had her first day on March 1, without disclosing that she was disabled by osteoarthritis.

She convinced Ms Richards to also hire her carer - without telling her she was her carer - with the intention that she would palm off cleaning and mopping to her.

Ms Taylor did not think cleaning was part of basic bar work, the tribunal was told.

On March 2, Ms Taylor was given a Henry vacuum cleaner and mop and bucket.

'Ms Taylor in response, made a request for an upright vacuum and a domestic style (squirting) spray mop', the tribunal was told.

'She did not suggest when she was requested to clean out the fridge, that she was limited in her ability to clean out the fridge.

'[The bar] declined to provide an upright vacuum, as they already provided a Henry vacuum, which was light and had a long hose pipe.

'In use, the operation of an upright vacuum would not be lighter than a Henry vacuum, with regard to the general design and its long hose and pipe.'

The pub also didn't provide a 'squirty' domestic mop as it needed an industrial one.

That evening Ms Taylor texted Ms Richards to say: 'Sorry but I'm in agony tonight I can move glasses pour a pint and wash and wipe down.

'Mopping and scrubbing fridges is not doing bar work.'

She also claimed 'I did tell you before I started I was disabled'.

The next day Ms Richards sacked her.

Later that day Ms Taylor sent Ms Richards a long message saying 'I have a problem with how I was treated today and dismissed' and told her she was suing her.

She claimed she suffered 'extreme pain' in her shoulders because she had to use a Henry Hoover and a mop and bucket.

Employment Judge Rory McPherson dismissed Ms Taylor's claim of failure to make reasonable adjustments, a form of disability discrimination.

The judge said: 'It would not have been proportionate, in circumstances, where Ms Taylor had suggested that alternate domestic style spray mop be provided to allow her to mop the floor and further had proposed that she be provided with a upright vacuum which the Tribunal concludes would not have been material lighter than the Henry type vacuum, to allocate all cleaning (beyond glass cleaning) to other bar staff.

'The Tribunal does not accept that that provision of Henry type vacuum put her at a substantial disadvantage in relation to a relevant matter in comparison to non-disabled employees at the relevant time.'

However, the judge ruled she was 'dismissed without any process because of the concern over her health' and Ms Taylor won a claim of disability discrimination.

Ms Taylor won £2,986.83 in compensation.