Bus driver who lost his licence after having stroke and was later fired on medical grounds was unfairly dismissed, tribunal rules

Judge says the dismissal was ‘unreasonable’ as the claimant was making good progress in his rehabilitation and occupational health reported he was fit to work

by Elizabeth Howlett 21 August 2023

Credit: Getty Images

A bus driver who was unable to carry out his duties and lost his PCV licence following a stroke has won a claim for unfair dismissal after being fired on medical grounds. 

The East London tribunal found that Mr Z Farooqi had his employment at East London Bus and Coach Company (ELBCC) terminated, despite OH deeming him fit to work with some minor adjustments. 

The tribunal ruled that it would have been reasonable to dismiss Farooqi for not having a PCV licence following the stroke – which allowed him to legally drive a passenger vehicle – as that was part of his employment terms. But it said dismissing him on medical grounds when he made improvements was outside the band of reasonable responses. 

The tribunal heard that on 30 January 2020, Farooqi suffered a stroke, which meant he was hospitalised for 13 days and, throughout the course of his rehabilitation, was signed off with a series of fit notes until 9 October 2020. 

During this time, Farooqi was furloughed during the pandemic, and then remained signed off work once the furlough scheme was removed by ELBCC due to driver demand. 

However, on 11 June, Farooqi’s PCV licence was revoked in response to his stroke and he could not reapply until 12 months after the date of his stroke. 

On 10 July, he attended a long-term sick interview with garage manager Mr White, the outcome of which was a referral to occupational health. 

On 14 July, an OH consultation took place and Farooqi explained he had “no problems” with limb movement, balance, suffered no sensorineural deficits and no residual cognitive issues – aside from one remaining symptom of fatigue which “required him to rest occasionally”. 

OH determined that Farooqi should be able to undertake any duty short of driving a bus or a lorry, which would have been covered by his PCV licence. It also stated he “may need adjustments to accommodate his reduced stamina”, but could not say how long that would last.

On 31 July, Farooqi and White had another meeting to discuss the OH report and Farooqi said he was “getting better” and had been “discharged” from rehabilitation, and asked if alternative work could be found. 

Following the meeting, White wrote Farooqi a letter saying the OH report stated he “suffer[s] with fatigue very easily”. White then emailed colleagues to find out if there were any non-driving alternative roles, but did not ask if there were any driving roles that did not require a PCV licence. There were no roles available. 

The tribunal also said White’s comment about suffering fatigue “easily”  was not a “fair or accurate summary” of the report. 

On 7 August, there was a final meeting and Farooqi was informed this could result in his dismissal. He reiterated that he “felt good” but did “sometimes” get tired. White terminated Farooqi’s employment on medical grounds.

The tribunal noted that a main statement in Farooqi’s terms and conditions of employment was that he held a current PCV driving licence and said his employment could be terminated if he lost his licence “for any reason whatsoever”. 

Judge’s comments 

Employment judge Gardiner ruled that the “principal reason” for Farooqi’s dismissal was the state of his health, with the lack of PCV licence being a subsidiary reason. 

Gardiner said that a reasonable employer would not have dismissed Farooqi on medical grounds and the decision “fell outside” the range of reasonable responses.

“Mr White failed to make an important distinction. This was between, on the one hand, [Farooqi’s] health as at the date of dismissal, 7 August 2020 and the potential for further improvement; and, on the other hand, the loss of his PCV licence, which had been caused by the state of [Farooqi’s] health as it was at the end of January 2020. 

“By the point of dismissal, [Farooqi’s] health had made a significant recovery,” said Gardiner, who also said on medical grounds alone he was “fit to work”. 

The tribunal also found that if ELBCC were “acting reasonably” it could have dismissed Farooqi for not being “legally entitled” to drive buses. 

His claim for unfair dismissal was upheld but a further claim for disability discrimination failed. A remedy hearing will be set for a later date. 

ELBCC has been contacted for comment. Farooqi could not be reached.