Mr Ajeet Kumar v Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust — 2023

The tribunal considered at a preliminary hearing whether Mr Kumar's claims had been presented in time. The whistleblowing claim concerned alleged detriments following complaints in 2020 about workplace Covid safety, including disciplinary action that ended with a final written warning and an appeal rejected no later than 31 August 2021. Early conciliation began on 27 January 2022 and the claim form was submitted on 31 March 2022.

For the protected disclosure detriment claim, the tribunal found that the last alleged detriment was the appeal rejection by 31 August 2021. Mr Kumar relied on the Trust's internal process still being ongoing, but he had not suggested that he was unaware of his right to bring a claim or of the relevant time limits. The tribunal concluded that it had not been shown that presenting the claim in time was not reasonably practicable.

The disability discrimination claim was framed as a failure to make reasonable adjustments for Long Covid. The tribunal accepted that by 25 March 2021 the relevant adjustments had been made, including shortened operating lists and no participation in the on-call rota. It found a substantial delay and held that waiting for the internal complaints process was not enough, particularly where the written internal complaint focused on disciplinary action and not reasonable adjustments. The tribunal declined to extend time on just and equitable grounds, and dismissed the claims.