In person For the v Respondent — 2023

This was an open preliminary hearing limited to whether Ms Francisco met the Equality Act 2010 definition of disability during the relevant period, namely 4 August 2021 to 14 October 2021. The tribunal accepted that she worked for Banham Poultry (2018) Limited as a Production Operative, that there had been a chemical spill on 4 August 2021, and that she had inhaled chlorine gas and later attended A&E. The tribunal also noted fit notes and occupational health evidence recorded symptoms including headaches, hoarseness, fatigue and feeling unwell after the gas exposure.

The tribunal held that those symptoms did not satisfy the disability definition because they had not lasted for 12 months during the relevant period. It also found there was no cogent evidence, at the time, that the condition was likely to last for at least 12 months, for the rest of her life, or to recur. The tribunal therefore found that Ms Francisco was not a disabled person at the material time and dismissed the disability discrimination complaints. It added that, even if disability had been established, it could not see how the respondent would have known of it on the evidence before it.