Worker Wasn’t Fired Because of Thumb Injury

A worker injured his thumb in a work-related car accident. He missed one day of work and then returned to his regular duties. When he was fired several months later, he claimed disability discrimination. The Human Rights Tribunal found that the employer had initially accommodated the worker. When he was asked if he needed further accommodations, he said no. So there was no way the employer could’ve known he needed additional accommodations several months later. The Tribunal concluded that the worker was fired for performance issues unrelated to his disability [Balsara v. Zellers Inc., [2013] AHRC 7 (CanLII), June 27, 2013].