LONDON: Cable News Network (CNN) has been granted permission to proceed with their appeal against an Employment Tribunal's decision to grant British-Pakistani journalist Saima Mohsin the right to have her case heard in the United Kingdom (UK).
The journalist was left disabled following an accident when she was reporting from Jerusalem on the Israel-Palestine conflict for CNN in 2014.
CNN terminated her contract in 2017 when she requested the media organisation to switch her to a physically less demanding role and support her during post-injury rehabilitation programme.
Mohsin — who had a breakdown and suffered from depression — eventually learnt to control her foot again and become “weight-bearing” through extensive physiotherapy but lives in constant pain — which often left him bed-ridden. She now uses a walking stick and cannot work full time.
The reporter moved Employment Tribunal against unfair dismissal, disability discrimination, victimisation, failure to make reasonable adjustments and equal pay.
However, CNN rejected the claims and had contested her ability to seek justice in the UK by claiming the Employment Tribunal did not have jurisdiction to hear her appeal and that the Equality Act 2010 and Employment Rights Act 1996 did not apply on the grounds of territorial jurisdiction.
Saima’s claim raises important questions about journalist safety, the treatment of women of colour in journalism, as well as the ability of foreign correspondents to ensure they are provided proper healthcare after being injured on assignment and can continue to work, according to her lawyers.
The media organisation is trying to avoid the prospect of a full hearing before the Employment Tribunal to allow an independent adjudication of Saima's claims by arguing that the UK courts should not even hear the case, kicking the matter into the legal long grass.
A two-day hearing for CNN’s appeal will be listed in the near future.
A final hearing for the unfair dismissal and disability discrimination case, including Equal pay is listed for April 28th 2025.
“I am disappointed CNN has chosen to take this route and appeal [....] Dragging a disabled journalist, injured on assignment, through court rather than addressing my unfair dismissal & disability discrimination,” she said.
“As a journalist with a disability I simply asked for reasonable adjustments to continue doing the job I loved and was very good at. Instead CNN fired me and escorted me out of the building,” the journalists noted.
