Member: Ms J Smillie Tribunal Member: Mr J McCaig Ms Agnes Connor v Represented by: Ms L Hunter - Solicitor South Lanarkshire Council — 2021

Ms Agnes Connor had worked for South Lanarkshire Council as a home carer since 30 May 2006. The tribunal accepted that she was disabled in the period relevant to the claims, with combined disability consisting of being registered as severely sight impaired and having mental health issues. After a stroke in December 2019 she was absent from work for about 10 months, then returned in October 2020 on a double-up basis following occupational health input from Dr Herbert.

From June 2021 the dispute centred on the respondent's handling of her return to work, including requests that she work on her own, changes to her shift pattern, and an occupational health discussion on 6 July 2021. The tribunal found that many of the pleaded incidents occurred as facts, but held that none of the incidents relied on for direct discrimination was proved to have been because of disability. The indirect discrimination claim also failed because there was no evidence of the required group disadvantage, and the reasonable adjustments claim failed because the pleaded issue was framed as a failure to adhere to an adjustment rather than a failure to make one, and because the claimant did not actually undertake lone working.

The claimant succeeded only in relation to item xv at the meeting on 20 October 2021. The tribunal found that Ms Allan's questions about wrong medication, food poisoning, how the claimant managed at home and who did her shopping were made. It held that those questions were unfavourable treatment because of something arising from disability for the purposes of s.15, namely the claimant's eyesight difficulties and concern about working alone, and also that they were unwanted conduct related to disability which had the effect of humiliating her, so the harassment claim succeeded on the same incident.

The victimisation case failed. The tribunal held that Mr Smellie's email of 1 October 2021 did not amount to a protected act alleging a contravention of the Equality Act, and it did not accept that the later grievance and appeal steps were shown to have caused the later alleged detriments. The tribunal also rejected the claim for an ACAS uplift, finding no relevant breach of the Code in the handling of the handwritten grievance or the appeal process.

On remedy, the tribunal awarded loss of earnings of £5,452.35 and £8,560.75, injury to feelings of £9,720.89, and personal injury damages of £10,511.78, all inclusive of interest. In the reasons it assessed loss of earnings at £13,393.30 before interest, injury to feelings at £9,100, and personal injury at £10,000. It accepted Dr Riaz's evidence on psychiatric injury but applied apportionment under Konczak, awarding 20% of the claimed personal injury loss. The total award was £34,245.77, with total interest of £1,752.47.