In iForce Ltd v Wood, the EAT has clarified that there is no claim for unfavourable treatment arising from disability where an employee is disciplined because they refuse to obey an instruction which they wrongly believe will exacerbate their disability, unless the disability itself causes the employee to form that mistaken belief (eg, because of pain or stress).
An employee mistakenly believed that moving to a different workstation would expose her to colder and damper working conditions which would exacerbate her osteoarthritis and so refused to do so; in fact the temperature and humidity levels were not materially different. She was unable to show that the warning she was given for refusing to move was less favourable treatment because of "something arising from her disability". Although the causal link between the "something" and the underlying disability may be a loose one and may involve several links, there must be an actual connection, not just a perceived connection on the part of the employee.
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