An administrator who worked at a crane hire business for 27 years and whose manager ignored her complaints, has won a disability discrimination case relating to menopause.
The tribunal heard how the claimant’s symptoms had a ‘profound’ impact on her ‘day to day activities’ and ‘it felt to her like she had a goldfish bowl on her head’. The claimant experienced a wide range of both mental health and physical symptoms including, low mood, anxiety, low self-esteem, tiredness, fatigue and brain fog. Although her symptoms fluctuated, ‘menopause affected her resilience and ability to cope with the stresses and strains of daily life and work’, and were therefore deemed by the tribunal to amount to a disability under the Equality Act 2010. To add to matters, the employee’s parents were elderly and needed assistance.
The tribunal heard that in August 2021, the claimant requested an amendment to her working hours so she could attend a course on Wednesdays, which was agreed for the period of 13 September 2021 to 1 July 2022. It was proposed the new working arrangement was to be reviewed on 1 July to decide if it should be made permanent. However, no such review meeting was arranged and around the time the arrangement was coming to an end, the claimant asked whether she could further reduce her hours and change her day off from Wednesdays to Fridays. She was asked to put her request in writing.
On July 7 2022, a meeting took place and the claimant explained how her mental health was not the same as it was as a result of the menopause and that she needed Fridays off as no one else in her family was available on that day to help care for her elderly parents. The claimant also highlighted how the traffic was particularly bad on Fridays and she was concerned about traffic and getting home late. The company responded that, ‘Friday could be the business’ busiest day’ and rejected the claimant’s flexible working request, suggesting that she take carer’s leave as needed. The claimant resigned soon afterwards.
The respondent told the tribunal it had hoped for a compromise whereby the claimant worked a 4-day a week with any day off apart from Friday. However, the Employment Judge found that there was ‘no indication’ that the claimant was given that option and also criticised the respondent’s lack of interest in her menopause symptoms. Whilst the tribunal accepted that allowing the claimant to take Fridays off would be ‘problematic’ for the business, it found that the respondent had ‘failed to take into account the fact the claimant was going through the menopause in determining her flexible working request, dated 4 July 2022’.
James Roddy, Employment Tribunal & Employment Law Consultant comments:
“This case highlights that it is essential for employers to thoroughly understand and accommodate the specific needs of employees experiencing health-related issues, such as menopause. Employers must engage in open, empathetic dialogue to assess the impact of these conditions on work performance and explore reasonable adjustments. This is a difficult area for many employers and one that is worth seeking specialist advice on.”
Under the Equality Act 2010, failure to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ for an employee whose menopause symptoms meet the definition of a disability amounts to disability discrimination. If you’re an employer looking to implement reasonable adjustments due to menopause symptoms or you are looking introduce a menopause support policy, please contact us on 01942 727200 or email enquiries@employeemanagement.co.uk for a no obligation chat.