We have for some time known that stress, anxiety, and depression can, should they meet the requirements of the definition under the Equality Act 2010, be a disability. The following case illustrates this further. 

Ms Jung was a senior campaigner for Amnesty International and had worked there for 17 years. She was dismissed in May 2022 following objections she made to Amnesty’s decision to award prisoner of conscience status to Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader and high-profile critic of Vladimir Putin. Ms Jung’s objections centred around allegations that Mr Navalny had incited hatred against Muslims.

In response to her dismissal, Ms Jung is now pursuing several claims against the human rights charity, including one for disability discrimination. Ms Jung argues she was disabled because she was suffering from stress and anxiety following the decision to make Mr Navalny a prisoner of conscience.  

To allow the part of her claim relating to disability discrimination to continue, a preliminary hearing was held to decide whether the stress and anxiety that Ms Jung suffered amounted to a disability under the Equality Act 2010.

The judge accepted that Amnesty’s decision in relation to Mr Navalny had a ‘profound effect’ on Ms Jung and that her diagnosed condition of stress and anxiety since May 2021 has, and continues to have, an effect on her day-to-day life and activities, therefore constituting a disability. Ms Jung’s claim for disability discrimination can continue alongside her other claims.

Learning points
Whilst this is not a 'floodgates case', we have known that stress and anxiety can be a disability and stress is an inevitable part of 21st-century life and work. It is nevertheless useful to look at some learning points:

• Be aware of the early signs of stress - This can be periods of absence from work, or an employee appearing quieter and more withdrawn. Where identified, give the employee through whatever channels opportunities to talk about their stress and feel comfortable requesting help and ways to alleviate it. Ensure managers are trained either to help employees or signpost them to someone who can. 

• Do not ignore calls for help - The judge agreed that Amnesty had 'stonewalled [Ms Jung] by ignoring her protests' after the Navalny decision. Unavoidable decisions may be made that may cause employees stress and anxiety. Whilst it may not be practicable to reverse that decision, steps should be made to make a stressed employee feel heard and given an opportunity to ask for changes to be made to alleviate the stress.   
• Implement a 'stress at work' policy which outlines the organisation’s approach to stress and mental wellbeing in the workplace and gives employees options to seek out should they feel under stress. 
• Use occupational health to assess what can be done to alleviate the stress and help the employee cope.   
• Everyone will have different trigger points and tipping points – Don’t assume that all staff will feel the same amount of stress at the same time. Different events and pressures may trigger different reactions from staff. It is important to remember that the test for a disability is not a comparison test but rather whether that stress and anxiety have a substantial and long-term adverse effect on an individual’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. 

If your organisation wishes to discuss any issues relating to stress at work, please do not hesitate to get in touch with one of our employment team.