£4.6M Disability Discrimination Award: What Employers Need to Know About ADHD and PTSD in the Workplace

The sum of £4.6m has been awarded to a claimant who was disabled by virtue of her PTSD and ADHD and who successfully brought claims for disability discrimination against the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. At the time, this was among the largest awards ever made by an employment tribunal. Disability discrimination awards are uncapped, and this case remains a significant benchmark for employers on neurodiverse conditions:

1. Repeating to the claimant the suggestion that her brain “doesn’t work like other people’s”
2. Telling the claimant that she did not realise she was being serious when discussing ADHD
3. Accusing the claimant of failing to declare her disabilities to the first respondent during the recruitment process.

This case goes to show that dealing with employees in the workplace with neurodiverse or health conditions that might constitute a disability is not only a minefield that requires specialist employment law advice, it’s potentially a very expensive area for employers when it goes wrong.

For advice about disability discrimination or any other employee or workplace issue, get in touch with Jenna Ide or another member of our Employment Law team today.

See also our disability discrimination solicitors and neurodiversity in the workplace pages.

Jenna Ide