Settlement for dyslexic worker

Gardner Merchant agreed an out-of-court settlement with a dyslexic former employee last week, on the day he was due to appear at an industrial tribunal.

Darren Stewart was employed as a storeman in the kitchens at razor-blade manufacturer Gillette UK, where Gardner Merchant holds the catering contract, before his departure last year. It is understood that Stewart claimed to have felt victimised because of his difficulty in following written instructions.

But he said he was unable to comment on the matter because of a confidentiality clause that Gardner Merchant had put into the settlement agreement.

In October a dyslexic woman was awarded almost £6,500 from contract caterer Compass after she was forced to resign because her bosses refused to buy her a £23 spellchecker (Caterer, 4 November, page 6).

Jane Sorrell of North Weald, Essex, had worked for the company for 10 years when she resigned from her post as assistant manager of Chartwell's at Chigwell public school when she was given the choice to take a demotion and a pay cut or be sacked.

Geoff Grant, public affairs director of the Dyslexia Institute, said research showed that the catering and hotel industry employed a significantly high proportion of dyslexic people.

"Dyslexics tend to have greater creative skills," he said. "By not accepting their problem, companies could be losing out on important opportunities."

For more information, contact the Dyslexia Institute on 01784 463851 or visit its Web site at http://www.dyslexia-inst.org.uk