Good news for employers: an employee being signed off with “work-related stress” does not automatically mean they are disabled under the Equality Act 2010 — or that a disciplinary, grievance or redundancy process must grind to a halt.
There is an important distinction between a recognised mental health condition, such as depression or an anxiety disorder, and stress that is primarily a reaction to difficult circumstances at work.
In Herry v Dudley Metropolitan Council, the Employment Appeal Tribunal confirmed that work-related stress caused by unhappiness about workplace events will not necessarily amount to a mental impairment. The EAT memorably stated that:
“Unhappiness with a decision or a colleague, or a tendency to nurse grievances or a refusal to compromise are not of themselves mental impairments.”
Simply having a fit note referring to “stress at work”, therefore, does not automatically trigger the duty to make reasonable adjustments. The employee would still need to meet the Equality Act definition of disability: a physical or mental impairment with a substantial and long-term (longer than 12 months) negative effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
Can you continue a disciplinary or redundancy process?
Potentially, yes.
ACAS advises employers to balance the employee’s well-being against the need to avoid unnecessary delay. You might rearrange the meeting, allow written representations, hold it remotely, or obtain medical advice on how the employee can participate. However, sickness absence does not give an employee an indefinite right to postpone proceedings.
The practical message is reassuring: “stress at work” is not an automatic trump card that prevents an employer from managing misconduct, performance, attendance or redundancy.
Do contact us as soon as an employee goes off with stress at work during a formal process. With the right advice and a sensible procedure, the situation is usually far more manageable than employers fear.
