A caretaker who was sacked after being too exhausted to work has successfully claimed that long covid is a disability.
Terence Burke contracted coronavirus in November 2020 with "very mild and flu-like symptoms", which soon developed into severe headaches and fatigue. He was so exhausted that he could not return to work at Turning Point Scotland until he was sacked nine months later.
Having worked for the charity since April 2001, Mr Burke and his wife contracted covid and developed fatigue so bad, he would need to lie down after getting dressed in the morning and also experienced joint pain in his arms, legs and shoulders. This came with a loss of appetite and lack of concentration.
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Now, in a first public case of its kind, a tribunal panel concluded covid had resulted in "substantial and long-term effects" and in a landmark ruling, Mr Burke is believed to be the first person to have long covid recognised as a disability.
The tribunal heard Mr Burke was signed off sick as he struggled to complete simple household chores and even missed a family funeral because of his extreme tiredness, the Mirror reports. After the preliminary case to determine if he was legally disabled, the lawsuit against his former employer can proceed to a full hearing.
The tribunal head how Mr Burke was so ill, he could not socialise or even attend his uncle's funeral which was "very much out of character for him". He did not feel better until January of this year but still suffered from "continuing fatigue" and joint pain.
He was later sacked on ill health grounds after extended sick notes from his doctor. The dismissal letter read: "It is my view that you remain too ill to return to work and there appears to be nothing further we can do to adjust your duties or work environment that would make your return more likely."
His daughter Tressa Burke, CEO of Glasgow Disability Alliance, told the tribunal her father was "fatigued for months", had no appetite and lost weight. Despite hopes of returning to work in April 2021 he was "zonked" and left exhausted for days after.
The panel ruled that Mr Burke's long-covid amounted to a disability under the Equality Act as Employment Judge James Young ruled: "I consider that the relevant tests are met to meet the definition of disability."
Mr Burke will now bring his claims of unfair dismissal, disability discrimination, age discrimination and failure to pay redundancy payments to a final tribunal hearing.
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