Rank: Forum user 
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I have a new agency temp who has started working in my manufacturing area. One of the PPE requirements is that all employees must wear cut resistant gloves while handling materials.
New employee has a birth defect in one hand which means the standard gloves we have do not fit him. I obviously do not want to treat him any different than an able bodied employee, equally I do not feel confortable modifying gloves to suit him.
Does anyone have any experience dealing with this type of situation / How did you resolve the issue?
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Rank: Super forum user 
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I know this isn't much help but it depends on the deformity. I worked with someone who had been affected by thalidomide and he had a short left arm with a flipper hand, he used to put a rubber glove on it and then tape it on to stop it falling off. So long as the modification made to the glove still provides protection to his hand then I don't see what the issue is. The fact is that specialist items are not available for people with deformities because each person's deformity is different. Most people with issues like that are adept at adapting the equipment to make it usable for them.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Originally Posted by: Matt34  I have a new agency temp who has started working in my manufacturing area. One of the PPE requirements is that all employees must wear cut resistant gloves while handling materials.
New employee has a birth defect in one hand which means the standard gloves we have do not fit him. I obviously do not want to treat him any different than an able bodied employee, equally I do not feel confortable modifying gloves to suit him.
Does anyone have any experience dealing with this type of situation / How did you resolve the issue?
There is an important issue buried in this post - That of indirect discrimination. With the EA 2010 framed as it is then treating able bodied and disabled persons exactly the same may actually result in the disabled person being at a disadvantage compared to the able. Thus if there is a potential way of modifyig the gloves thenit should be done
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Discuss it with the new employee. He has been living with this all his life and has therefore a better grasp of required adaptations.
Just turning up with some ill-conceived remedy is likely to make him feel more isolated then if you spoke openly about it.
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Or review your RA and determine if a blanket glove policy is actually required
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Rank: Super forum user
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Or review your RA and determine if a blanket glove policy is actually required
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Rank: Super forum user
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Contracts with agencies vary. You may need to review chapter and verse of the specific instance here... Good chance the individual is an employee of the agency - not of your company.... This may change things.... You then need to check chapter and verse of the person spec. your company gave to the agency. It appears there is a strong case for amending either your contract or your method of specification... But... If the new guy is your employee... You need to make whatever 'reasonable adjustments' are appropriate... Which MAY include relaxing your 'rules' for this one individual... Or... Dismissing on grounds of capability if you cannot find any bespoke glove makers. (Or if the cost of such bespoke manufacture is grossly disproportionate?)
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Rank: Forum user
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Playing devils advocate, under the Equality Act 2010 you can dicriminate; in legal terms as objective justification. If discrimination is justified, it doesn’t count as unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act. A legitimate aim is the reason behind the discrimination. This reason must not be discriminatory in itself and it must be a genuine or real reason. Here are examples of legitimate aims: - the health, safety and welfare of individual
I'm not saying that you should, just saying that you can in you have sufficent justification. Source: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/discrimination/what-are-the-different-types-of-discrimination/justifying-discrimination/
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