The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has confirmed that obesity itself is not a disability under the Equality Act.  Nevertheless, the EAT commented that if a claimant is obese, it is possible that a tribunal will more readily conclude that they suffer from qualifying impairments.  The employee in question  in this case had numerous physical and mental conditions (including asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome, knee problems, bowel problems, anxiety and depression), which caused him difficulty in his day-to-day life.  In this case, the claimant’s list of conditions was extensive and evidently he was disabled under discrimination law.  Walker v SITA Information Networking
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The government has published a timetable for future employment law changes. The key measures and expected implementation dates are set out below. Spring 2013 Collective redundancy consultation. The 90 day consultation requirement for redundancies involving 100 or more employees is to be reduced to 45 days in April 2013. Consolidation of national minimum wage (NMW). The government will be simplifying the national minimum wages rules and intends to produce a single set of consolidated regulations by April 2013, merging the current 17 sets of regulations. Summer 2013 Compensatory award cap. The unfair dismissal compensatory award will be capped at the
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