Mr J Sparkes v Thames Water Utilities Limited — 2023

This was a preliminary hearing concerned with disability status and related jurisdiction issues. The tribunal ultimately focused on whether the claimant was a disabled person within section 6 of the Equality Act 2010 at the material times. It found that there were several periods in 2013, 2017, June to August 2020, October 2020, March 2021 and July to August 2021 when the claimant experienced symptoms including poor sleep, reduced appetite, anxiety, difficulty concentrating and low mood, and that some of those effects had a substantial adverse impact on normal day-to-day activities such as sleeping and eating.

The tribunal found, however, that none of those periods lasted 12 months. It also found that the claimant had not proved, judged at the relevant time, that the effects were likely to last at least 12 months or were likely to recur. The judge considered the evidence limited, noted the absence of expert medical evidence on the issues of duration and recurrence, and found the claimant’s evidence on dates and continuity of symptoms unreliable in some respects, while accepting it was given in good faith.

Because the claimant did not establish the long-term element of the statutory definition, the tribunal held that he was not a disabled person for Equality Act purposes at the material times. On that basis, the direct disability discrimination and harassment related to disability complaints were dismissed. The remaining complaints, including constructive unfair dismissal, sex discrimination, victimisation and unlawful deduction from wages, were left to proceed to the final hearing, with the time limitation issue for the sex discrimination complaint reserved.