Mr D Williams v Blackpool Laundry Company Ltd — 2021

Mr Williams claimed disability discrimination against Blackpool Laundry Company Ltd. The tribunal first addressed whether he was disabled during the material dates of 20 to 30 March 2020 by reason of asthma. It accepted that the relevant issue was that period, not the date of the hearing, and explained that the claimant had initially confused the timing of the disability assessment.

The tribunal found that any impact Mr Williams experienced during that period was attributable to COVID-related restrictions and anxiety about COVID, not to asthma. It accepted that he suffered some asthma attacks on 28, 29 and 30 March 2020, but found that they were not serious enough to require medical advice and were resolved using his inhaler. The medical evidence described the overall picture as mild asthma, and there was no evidence that asthma caused substantial effects on normal day-to-day activities during the material period.

Looking at the period before March 2020, the tribunal noted that the claimant's last annual asthma review was in September 2016, that he had received no treatment save for very occasional chest infections, and that from August 2019 until dismissal he worked long hours in a warm, damp laundry environment without sickness absence or asthma-related effects on day-to-day activities. It also accepted his evidence that any issues before he joined the respondent were minimal and that, by the end of March 2020, he had had no real problems with asthma.

The tribunal concluded that asthma did not have a substantial or long-term adverse effect on Mr Williams's normal day-to-day activities during 20 to 30 March 2020, so he was not disabled at the material time. His disability discrimination claims were therefore dismissed, and no remedy was awarded.