The High Court has ordered An Post to pay Catherine Hurley €161,133 in damages after finding that workplace bullying and harassment caused her post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression. The award followed an earlier decision that An Post was liable; this judgment dealt with damages only.
Mr Justice McDermott delivered the damages judgment on 16 March 2018, with further submissions on lost earnings heard on 23 March. The court had found that An Post knew of bullying and harassment by Ms Hurley’s co-workers and failed to address it meaningfully, breaching its duty of care and obligations under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
The assessment covered injuries and losses after Ms Hurley returned to work in August 2006. The court had already ruled that An Post was not liable for injury or loss caused by the initial workplace incident on 26 July 2006. Ms Hurley later took sick leave and did not return after February 2008. An Post dismissed her in July 2011.
The court accepted the diagnosis of consultant psychiatrist Dr Eugene Morgan that Ms Hurley had moderate PTSD, triggered by the July 2006 incident and substantially contributed to by subsequent bullying and harassment. It also accepted that her symptoms included anxiety and depression, and that stress heightened pain in her neck and shoulder. The judge preferred Dr Morgan’s evidence to the defence psychiatrist, Dr Damien Mohan, who disputed the PTSD diagnosis and considered her symptoms a reactivation of earlier difficulties.
The court noted that Ms Hurley had previously experienced anxiety and stress related to pregnancies, but found no evidence of similar symptoms requiring treatment between 2003 and 2006. It rejected the allegation that she deliberately withheld her earlier medical history from doctors.
The judge limited compensation for pain and suffering to the period from her return to work in August 2006 through the end of 2011. Although the court accepted that Ms Hurley continued to have symptoms, it found she had not consistently followed the medication regime recommended by her psychiatrist. The judge concluded that she was not entitled to compensation for pain and suffering caused by symptoms that continued largely because she did not follow the treatment advised. The court also rejected her claim for lost earnings after 2011.
The award comprised €50,000 for pain and suffering, €84,426 for net lost earnings, €22,064 interest on the recoverable portion of lost earnings, and €4,643 for other special damages. The court said €39,426 of the lost earnings figure was recoverable benefit under the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2013. The total award was €161,133.