How effective will the adjustment be?
The more effective the adjustment is in eliminating the disadvantage, the more likely it is to be considered reasonable.
For example: Following his stroke Martin has neck pain when turning his head and this became worse when inputting data into the computer. Martin was provided with a document slope positioned between his computer keyboard and monitor to eliminate the need to repeatedly turn his head. This eliminated his discomfort and enabled him to carry out the task independently and therefore this simple adjustment is likely to be considered reasonable.
How practical is it to make the adjustment?
The easier it is to make the adjustment, the more likely it is to be considered reasonable.
For example: Jane was unable to reach the information leaflets she needed for distributing to clients at her smoking cessation group because of weakness in her right shoulder following her stroke. Every week she had to ask a colleague to bring these down from a high shelf for her. The leaflets were moved to the top drawer of a two drawer filing cabinet, enabling Jane to reach and carry out this work task herself. This simple adjustment effectively removed the disadvantage and could therefore be considered reasonable.
Financial/other costs of making the adjustment
The employer might take into account how long the employee has been in post, how experienced they are and how difficult it would be to replace them.
For example: Jonathan is headteacher at a large secondary school. To enable him to return to work after a stroke affecting his mobility, he was provided with a disabled parking space close to the ramped access into the school. A powered wheelchair was provided for use at work and a wheelchair lift installed to enable him to move freely around the school. The financial cost of these adaptations was largely funded by Access to Work. Although extensive, these adaptations allowed the school to keep a highly qualified, experienced and valued member of staff within their team and therefore these adjustments are likely to be considered reasonable.
Financial/other resources of the employer
The bigger the employer, the more likely they are to be able to bear the financial and other costs of the adjustment.
For example: Lisa works as an accounts assistant in the busy accounts department of a large oil services company. She has been off work for several months and still experiences fatigue following her stroke and now wants to return to work part-time. Lisa’s additional hours are allocated to a colleague who is keen to work full-time now that her children are at school and Lisa was able to return to work part-time. This adjustment is likely to be considered reasonable as the department’s productivity, nor Lisa’s colleagues negatively affected.
Page last reviewed: 08 Apr 2021
