JONATHAN GEE WINS TOURETTE'S DISCRIMINATION CASE AGAINST JF RENSHAW

Jonathan Gee has won a disability discrimination claim against JF Renshaw, a British food manufacturer, after it dismissed him for calling a colleague a "lazy bastard". Liverpool Employment Tribunal ruled that the company discriminated against Gee, who lives with Tourette's syndrome, ADHD, OCD and PTSD, and awarded him £9,710 in compensation. Gee told the tribunal he confronted the colleague because he felt she was "not pulling her weight". He started at JF Renshaw in September 2020 and was sacked two months later, following the outburst.

The tribunal heard that Gee's conditions cause him to follow rules and instructions rigidly, and that being told to ignore them can trigger angry outbursts that have ended most of the 56 jobs he has held. It heard his conditions hamper his independence, to the extent that he lives with his mother. Following the outburst, management referred Gee to Occupational Health, which identified conditions affecting his behaviour and performance at work. The findings were discussed at a meeting with area manager Sandra Bray in November 2020, where suggestions included "time out" sessions and short meetings with his manager during each shift. On the same day, JF Renshaw dismissed Gee with one week's notice, citing a need to release temporary workers.

The tribunal ruled that JF Renshaw treated Gee's disabilities as "too much of a burden" during his employment. It also found that the company unfairly declined to rehire him when he reapplied for a role a year after his dismissal. Those findings, combined with the original dismissal, formed the basis for the £9,710 compensation award. The ruling set out in detail how Gee's conditions have shaped his employment history across dozens of previous roles.