Mrs Janice Trustram v Easyjet Airline Company Limited — 2023

Mrs Trustram brought disability discrimination complaints arising from a workplace medical assessment and later roster coding. The tribunal recorded that she had worked for EasyJet as cabin crew, suffered a head injury in August 2019, developed migraines with aura, and was placed on furlough from 1 April 2020. After an AXA Health aero-medical assessment on 26 April 2021 she was assessed unfit, moved to Long-Term Sick status, and taken off furlough; she was later recoded fit on 26 August 2021.

At this preliminary hearing, Employment Judge Tobin held that the detriment complained of was a single decision on 26 April 2021, not a continuing act. The tribunal found that the claim form presented on 28 July 2022 was outside the three-month time limit in s123 Equality Act 2010, and that the claimant could not rely on ACAS Early Conciliation to bring it in time because the statutory period had already expired. The judge considered the discretion to extend time on a just and equitable basis, applying the factors discussed in Robertson, Keeble, Morgan and related authorities, but declined to extend time.

The claimant's explanations for the delay, including lack of awareness of the time limits, reliance on union support, internal grievance activity, and asserted panic attacks or anxiety, were rejected or given limited weight. The tribunal found that she was an intelligent and experienced employee and trade union representative, that the medical evidence did not support incapacity preventing a timely claim, and that the balance of prejudice favoured the respondent. Because the complaints were out of time and no extension was granted, the tribunal did not decide whether she was disabled at the material time and dismissed the proceedings for lack of jurisdiction.