Railway inspector discriminated against

In Moreland v Northern Ireland Railways Company Ltd a Belfast industrial tribunal (Chair: M Davey) holds that a railway track inspector who was transferred to a significantly lower-paid job following his failure to meet the required safety standard for hearing, was unlawfully discriminated against on grounds of disability because it failed to consider whether the inspector could have continued to work with the railway at a job such as portering if reasonable adjustments had been made.

David Moreland, who has a hearing loss in one ear, was employed by Northern Ireland (NI)Railways for approximately 17 years. He worked his way up from being a member of the track laying and maintenance squad to being a foreman and finally, from May 1997, to being the Permanent Way Relay Inspector (PWRI).