IT employee sues AstraZeneca for incapacity discrimination after his request to work at home due to his eczema was ‘refused’ by bosses

An IT worker has launched a disability discrimination claim against AstraZeneca after they stopped him from working from home because of his eczema.

An employment judge ruled that Laszlo Kalman is a ‘disabled person’ due to the ‘adverse impact’ his skin condition has on his day to day activities.

A preliminary hearing was told the IT worker suffered skin dryness, discomfort and itching, which affects his ability to sleep and socialise with others.

It was heard the ‘primary source’ of his issues with the pharmaceutical giant related to them asking employees to work three days per week from the office, but he considered his condition ‘required him to remain working from home’.

The Hungarian national will now progress to a final hearing against AstraZeneca – whose primary sites are in Macclesfield and Cambridge – at a later date.

The preliminary hearing, held in Bury St Edmunds, was told Mr Kalman started working as an IT Apprentice for AstraZeneca in September 2019.

Mr Kalman was hired under a four year contract which ended in September last year.

In 2022, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology company introduced a policy which said all employees should work for three days a week from the office.

This was done so in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic in which remote working was rolled out, it was heard.

But, Mr Kalman said that his ‘conditions’ meant he should continue working from his home.

The panel was Mr Kalman suffered from eczema since early childhood and had developed his various types of allergies over the years.

The IT apprentice said as a result of his skin condition, his sleep is often ‘interrupted’ by itching – ‘particularly when he stays at his girlfriend’s house where there are gerbils and he cannot ensure the sheets are always freshly washed’.

‘Further, when he wakes up his skin is dry, red and itchy, and can be bleeding,’ the tribunal said.

‘[Mr Kalman] says he has to shower and then apply a moisturising balm over the affected areas, which he has to allow to soak in for 20 minutes before getting dressed.’

It was heard his choice of clothes is also ‘influenced’ by his condition because he wears long-sleeved shirts and jumpers to avoid revealing his arms.

Mr Kalman is allergic to quinoline mix and chromium salts, cat and dog dander, dust mite.

The IT apprentice told the tribunal that eating the ‘wrong things’ causes him nausea, bloating, dizziness, rashes and shortness of breath.

Mr Kalman also told the panel that since early childhood he has intermittently used topical corticosteroids – but does not believe the long-term use of steroid creams would have a ‘positive prognosis’.

The tribunal heard Mr Kalmans conditions were ‘negatively impacted’ by the Covid vaccine, and by contracting the virus at various points, and he underwent a series of alternative treatments in his home country, Hungary.

This included acupuncture and therapy from supplements and nutrition.

He listed how the conditions affect his day to day activities and these include bathing taking longer, having to apply a moisturising balm after his shower, house chores exacerbating his symptoms and his sleep being affected.

Mr Kalman said he also has to spend more time shopping and preparing food, finds sporting activities painful because sweat causes inflammation of his skin, and his symptoms flaring up during periods of exam stress.

At a preliminary hearing, EJ Sarah Moore has now ruled that his eczema is a disability therefore he is allowed to progress with a discrimination claim.

‘In the present case there is no dispute that [Mr Kalman] has eczema, and that eczema has the effect of causing skin dryness, discomfort and itching,’ the judge said.

‘As regards the impact that would have on [his] ability to carry out normal day to day activities, [he] gave evidence that his eczema affects his sleep, and further that if left untreated his eczema would significantly impair his ability to fall and stay asleep and would make basic activities like showering and wearing clothes painful.

‘He also stated that it would be likely to have an adverse impact on his desire to socialise and generally be seen in public, particularly since he suffers from eczema on exposed areas such as his face and neck.

‘I am satisfied this would be the case.

‘For that reason I am therefore satisfied that [Mr Kalman] satisfies the definition of being a disabled person within the meaning of s.6 EqA.’

The judge ruled that Mr Kalman would not be allowed to bring forward a claim of disability discrimination in relation to his allergies because while uncomfortable – they are ‘not life threatening’.

‘I consider [Mr Kalman] can reasonably be expected to modify his diet and generally behave in such a way as to prevent those impairments having a substantial adverse effect,’ EJ Moore said.

The tribunal heard that AstraZeneca accepts he suffers from these conditions but ‘it does not accept that they have a substantial adverse impact on the Claimant’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities’.

The full hearing into his complaints will take place at a later date.