Business

Automated tests speed recruitment but they can be a fast-track to tribunal on disability

Craig Patterson is an associate solicitor at law firm Pinsent Masons
Craig Patterson is an associate solicitor at law firm Pinsent Masons Craig Patterson is an associate solicitor at law firm Pinsent Masons

Employers will be well aware of the duty to make reasonable adjustments for employees living with a disability.

However, a recent Northern Ireland Court of Appeal case supported by the Equality Commission serves as a useful reminder that duty extends to applicants in recruitment processes as well.

An applicant, Kevin Meier, who lives with Asperger's Syndrome, Dyslexia and Dyspraxia, applied for a post with BT under its Graduate Recruitment Scheme.

He completed the equal monitoring form in which he recorded his disability and indicated that he wished to avail of the BT Disability Confident Scheme. This scheme guarantees applicants who have a disability an interview provided they satisfy the minimum criteria for the position.

After submitting his application, and before it was passed to the Graduate Recruitment Team (GRT), he was automatically asked to sit an online Situational Strengths Test (SST), a widely used, popular recruitment tool which assesses applicant's situational judgement.

Mr Meier did not meet the required standards in the test and received notification his application would not proceed to the next stage.

The information that Mr Meier had recorded his disability on the monitoring form, was not forwarded to the GRT, as it was not BT's practice to provide them this information.

This resulted in the recruiters treating the application as unsuccessful based on the SST score and at the time being unaware of his disabilities or request to avail of the BT Disability Confident Scheme.

The Tribunal accepted evidence of a specialist clinical psychologist that people with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) would be at a substantial disadvantage in SST over those without an ASD diagnosis.

By failing to put in any reasonable adjustments to remove that disadvantage, BT had subjected Mr Meier to discriminatory treatment. Mr Meier was awarded £12,500 for injury to feelings, £4,538.63 to account for loss of earnings plus interest of £1,400.

On appeal, the Court of Appeal upheld this finding and rejected BT's assertion that they did not have requisite knowledge of Mr Meier's disability owing to the fact that the GRT didn't receive the monitoring form.

Employers, particularly those who experience a high volume of applicants, are attracted by automated recruitment platforms and online testing as they speed up the recruitment process and reduce subjectivity in identifying the best candidates. However, this case is a useful reminder that employers must ensure that applicants with a disability are not disadvantaged by the use of such tools.

So how can employers manage the risk?

Firstly they should review their recruitment processes and identify whether any tests used could disadvantage disabled applicants (or any other group with a protected characteristic), consider whether that test is necessary, and if so what steps can be put in place to remove any disadvantage suffered by a disabled person arising out of their condition.

Secondly they should ensure their recruitment process is structured so information provided by the candidate which suggests that adjustments need to be considered are picked up at an early stage and reviewed. In doing so they must remember it is the employer who has the duty to make reasonable adjustments and not an applicant's duty to identify the adjustments which are required.

The case is timely, as although they are less visible than a physical disability, increasing awareness and improving diagnosis of learning and behavioural conditions means more candidates will present to employers with these types of challenges. The risks are manageable but employers must grasp the nettle.

Craig Patterson is an Associate Solicitor in the Belfast Employment team at international law firm Pinsent Masons. Connect with Craig on LinkedIn or visit pinsentmasons.com/out-law for news and analysis