Ms S Jones v Revolution Zero CIC and 2 others — 2021

Employment Judge Skehan, sitting alone on 8 July 2021, accepted that Ms S Jones had a mental impairment in the form of PTSD during the relevant period, 1 November 2018 to 2 October 2020, and that the condition had been formally diagnosed by Prof Long in May 2021. The tribunal also accepted that she had a history of anxiety, sleep problems and related symptoms, and considered the effects of medication and therapy during that period.

The tribunal held, however, that the impairment did not have a substantial adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. It found that the effect of medication was minimal, and that there was no evidence that therapy changed her ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. On the evidence, she could drive on ordinary roads, use public transport, shop, and attend some social activities; her avoidance of motorways, crowded places and certain routes was treated as a coping strategy rather than a substantial limitation.

The tribunal further found that public speaking, unplanned interviews, redundancy consultations, litigation hearings, working in a chaotic environment, and the need for written instructions either were not normal day-to-day activities or were not shown by medical evidence to arise from PTSD. Other reported symptoms, including tachycardia, hypervigilance, panic attacks, acne rosacea and proctitis, did not alter that conclusion. Ms Jones was therefore not a disabled person within section 6 of the Equality Act 2010, so the claims under sections 13, 15, 19 and 20-21 were dismissed. The separate victimisation claim under section 27 was not decided at this hearing and was listed to proceed to the final hearing; the judge also noted, without deciding it, that respondent knowledge would have been an issue because diagnosis post-dated termination.