Claimant v University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Outcome

Facts

The claimant was an unpaid, publicly elected volunteer governor for the respondent NHS Trust from October 2023 to March 2025. He had hearing problems and was provided with IT equipment to produce live captions at meetings. On 25 July 2024, the claimant was told to stop using the captioning equipment during a confidential meeting and to delete the transcript. He brought a claim of disability discrimination alleging failure to make reasonable adjustments. The respondent argued the claimant was a volunteer, not an employee or worker, and the tribunal had no jurisdiction.

Decision

The tribunal dismissed the claim on jurisdictional grounds, finding that the claimant was an unpaid volunteer with no contractual relationship with the respondent. Applying the Supreme Court decision in X v Mid Sussex Citizens Advice Bureau, the tribunal held that volunteers are not covered by the Equality Act 2010 employment provisions. The claimant had no contractual obligation to work, no entitlement to remuneration, and could resign at any time without remedy. The claim of disability discrimination therefore fell outside the tribunal's jurisdiction.

Practical note

Legal authorities cited