Recovering damages for occupational stress: Walker v. Northumberland County Council

Conclusion Given that occupational stress cases may hinge on the extent to which a plaintiff is willing to exhibit signs of breakdown, it is suggested that few cases are likely to succeed. Coupled with the fact that the variability inherent within the contractual and occupational context means that clear lines of liability are difficult to predict, it is, therefore, unlikely that litigation followingWalker will be able to take up the impetus generated by that case or act as a deterrent to overburdening employers. Importantly, though, it is submitted that the potential for extremeemployee participation in the sort of (particularly white collar) occupational stress scenarios could stretch mechanisms such asvolenti beyond their capacity. In turn, this may show tort to be too blunt an instrument for dealing with a social problem as subtle and multi-layered as occupational stress.