How Grace won her case for disability discrimination and unfair dismissal.
By Jo Porter
Grace’s diagnosis
In October 2022, Carmel Geoghegan was on a night out with friends in Leeds when she got a phone call from her daughter’s partner.
“He was really worried,” recalled Carmel, “and explained that Grace had some kind of episode in the night. He’d seen that her lips were blue so had carried out first aid resuscitation while he waited for the ambulance to arrive.”
Carmel, a former neurosurgical nurse, dropped everything and took a taxi to the hospital. When she got there, her worries increased.
Carmel said: “We now know that she’d had a tonic clinic seizure, and that she had been having nocturnal seizures for some time. When a consultant and a nurse came to talk to us about the scan results, I knew from my nursing days that things were serious. Grace was diagnosed with epilepsy and a left frontal operculum brain tumour. It was the irritation of the mass that was causing her seizures.”
Returning to work
A month later, hair stylist Grace, 28, was looking forward to catching up with some of her regular clients at the salon she had worked at in Stockport, Greater Manchester, since 2017. Following her shock brain tumour diagnosis, she’d been signed off work and was taking medication to control her seizures. In December she had a scan and her GP wrote a note advising that she delay going back to work until after Christmas.
By January 2023, Grace hadn’t had a seizure in six weeks and wanted to return to work on reduced hours for two days a week while she awaited surgery, which had been scheduled for March. She met her manager that month and again in February to discuss the situation and present a Fit Note. But her employer seemed reluctant to approve it. She texted Grace saying that she appreciated it was frustrating and that she had Grace’s “best interests at heart” but needed to get HR advice and follow procedure.
I felt like I was being a burden to the business and my manager and that every time I tried to go back to work, they kept putting barriers in place. I also felt like I was being an inconvenience as I was going to go back on sick leave again for my brain tumour operation. They blamed everything on HR or health and safety advice and wouldn’t accept my GP’s fit for work return.”
Grace Geoghegan
The grievance process
Grace was later told by her employer that she might not be able to work with her previous clients. She was asked to provide a letter specifying that she would be safe to stand for long periods and work with scissors, clippers and chemicals. Grace felt this was implicit in the Fit Note. Frustrated at the delay as it was affecting her income at an already stressful time, she raised a formal grievance.
When this was unsuccessful, she appealed. When this, too, was dismissed, Grace felt she had no choice but to resign in May 2023. Meanwhile, her surgery had been postponed several times because of the junior doctors’ strike.
Grace sought advice from family, ACAS and our Support and Information team – which has a partnership with Citizens Advice – then decided to take things further. Representing herself at an employment tribunal in late April 2024, Grace won her case for discrimination due to her disability and unfair dismissal. Now she’s keen to advocate for others with hidden disabilities.
Seeking justice
Grace was daunted by the prospect of representing herself at an employment tribunal, as well confronting former colleagues.
She said: “The tribunal was scary as I’ve never been in a situation like that before. It was also very upsetting as I thought my work colleagues were my friends. But I saw them in a completely different light following my diagnosis.
“I knew what they were doing was wrong but representing myself was daunting. The judge and the panel were very understanding and spoke in terms I would understand as I’m not a lawyer. It was intense and upsetting but I’m so glad I did it and got the justice I deserved. Alongside that I wanted to become an advocate for anyone with hidden disabilities because we have rights and cannot be treated this way.”
Grace told the hearing in Manchester that her condition had stabilised with medication and she’d been declared fit to work. When this wasn’t accepted by her employer, it caused a great deal of stress in addition to that caused by her diagnosis.
The hearing ruled that her employer should compensate her for the earnings she would’ve received had she been allowed back to work when she first requested it. Compensation for injury to feelings and interest on her financial losses was added. But the tribunal felt the respondent had been willing to make reasonable adjustments for Grace’s disability, so she lost this aspect of her claim.
You can read the full judgement here, but part of it reads:
The respondent might have been better able to explain the approach that they took had they educated themselves about the claimant’s condition. They did not do so. They could have prepared for, and considered, the claimant’s return to work at an earlier stage, prior to immediately before the expiry of the claimant’s previous fit note. They did not obtain occupational health advice about what was required, as they could have done.”
What is a Fit Note?
If someone is unwell they can contact their manager or employer and self-certify by explaining why they’re unable to work. If they’re off sick for seven days or more, most employers ask them to provide a Fit Note – previously called a sick note. This is an official statement from a registered healthcare professional giving their medical opinion on a person’s fitness for work. If needed, the Fit Note will include recommendations on their return to work. For instance, if someone has experienced a back injury the note might recommend they only undertake light duties.
Is a brain tumour a disability?
In the eyes of the law, if you’ve been diagnosed with a brain tumour, you may be considered to have a disability.
The Equality Act 2010 defines a disability as having a long-term physical or mental impairment which has a substantial adverse effect on your ability to carry out day-to-day activities.
Legislation protects anyone with a disability from unfair treatment at work as well as from harassment or victimisation. Employers are also legally obliged to make “reasonable adjustments” to help individuals continue working if they’re well enough.
This could include things like providing accessible equipment, or organising staff training in handling seizures or providing a colleague to stay with you during a seizure and to time its duration.
In Grace’s case, the tribunal found that she had been discriminated against because of her disability and unfairly dismissed.
There’s more information on what the circumstances that might count as unfair dismissal on the ACAS website here.
A new job, and wedding bells!
Grace had successful surgery in October 2023 but experienced intense migraines during her recovery.
She’s since got married and got a new job, saying: “My new colleagues have been very welcoming and understanding of my condition.”
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