Edinburgh Tribunal Rejects Former Zoo Keeper's Compensation Claim

Edinburgh's Employment Tribunal has rejected a compensation claim by Lisa O'Hara, a former animal keeper at Edinburgh Zoo, after she failed a test to identify different monkey species during the recruitment process. Court documents state that O'Hara worked in areas housing squirrel monkeys and capuchin monkeys, and received training on distinguishing between species. She resigned in February 2025, less than a year after beginning her employment. O'Hara alleged she experienced unfair treatment at work, including excessive surveillance and a discriminatory comment about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder from a colleague. Zoo management argued that correctly identifying animals was a fundamental requirement of the role and that O'Hara had received adequate training. The tribunal dismissed all eight complaints, including claims of unfair dismissal and discriminatory treatment.