Dismissal from work for being very ill...?

[Dani83]

Hi, Been back 2 work (office work)for 4 months after being of sick for 10 months. Diagnosed Sjogerns, cervical radiculopathy, nerve damage right arm, disc protrusion & displacement on separate areas.

Since been back pain is now going into my chest when i breath, lay down etc. Im so achy & tired. Lymph nodes swollen. I keep passing out. I do feel like im geting worse & no where near better.

Access2wrk been out got new equipment Manager said 'i should be able to fulfil my role because of all equipment. Then put me up for sickness hearing ( was sick because throwing up from Tramadol). She knows all tablets make me drowsy. Then told me im not working hard enough. OH dont no what to say! Union wants me to fight! HR on managers side!

Received my outcome letter saying if i go sick again will considor dismissal? Can they do this???

I think ive done well trying to go back to work whilst still ill & trying different meds. & waiting for pain management.

The thing is i feel so poorly i think im going to have to go of again.

I dont want to let them treat me like this but i feel to sick to fight? What would you all do...? Xx

[Heatheric]

Hi Dani, it's good that you've got the union involved. At the end of the day though, if you are not well enough to do your job in spite of all the help from access to work then maybe you need to consider if there is another job or different hours that you could do - that might take the pressure off you and help you to get through this bout of flare. Your employer has a responsibility to work through that with you but if you are not able to fulfill your contract then..... I know that sounds harsh and is a real worry re income but you need to find a way to concentrate on your health first. Good luck.

[misty14]

Hi Dani

It's shocking the way your being treated at work for being ill and no they can't dismiss you for it either!. It's good you've got your Union involved and if you need further help Citizens Advice have employment advisors who are good. There website has good links to info as well. If you had to think about giving up work they will also run a benefits check to see what help you could claim and will help you fill in the forms. I do hope you can get extra help to improve your health so that you can cope better at work. X

[Vasuna1]

Dani

I ended up having to leave my job after giving me a written test that had nothing to do with my job description.

I wanted to fightit and have co workers in my job description take the same test. I know they would have flunked it.

But i was so beaten down I let them let me go without a fight.

It seems unfair as you are trying your best.

I later got a job that was lighter duty. But was on disanility for a few years.

I ended up working a different tyoe job a few yrs later that did not put stress on me.

Good luck

[Dani83 in reply to Vasuna1]

Hi vasuna, must have been horrible for you to be put thru all of that xx

[whisperit]

How miserable for you, Dani83,

It's a really difficult dilemma. You have certain legal protection in this situation which means that you cannot be sacked straight away for being sick. And, as I understand it, some conditions secondary to SLE count as a 'disability' under the Equality Act 2010. However, it can be a brutal process.

In any case, employers are required to make "reasonable adjustments" to help you cope with a health condition.

But if they have already made "reasonable adjustments" and, after a fair trial, you are still unable to perform your work, they *can* then sack you.

My main advice would be:

1. Get the union to represent you at all meetings.

2. Make notes of how far your employer is really trying to help - for example, if they promise at a meeting that they are adjusting your work station, have they done so in an appropriate way? Have they given you reasonable notice of their sickness procedures etc?

3. Think about how much stress you are willing to put up with - is it really worth it? (alternatively, maybe you would feel better for putting up a fight!?)

Good luck, anyway x

[Dani83 in reply to whisperit]

Hi whisperit, thank you it is very frustrating when you are trying your best & employees just dont want to hear it. Like others have said think il have to speak to citizen advice. The stress isnt worth it. Thanks everyone xx

[Paul_Howard Partner LUPUS UK]

Hi Dani83 ,

I'm sorry to hear that you are having difficulty with your employers. Have you provided them with information about lupus and how it can affect you? It is often considered a reasonable adjustment to separate 'disability leave' from sickness leave for those with lupus and it should not be taken into consideration for disciplinary procedures.

We have a couple of booklets which you may find helpful. You can read and download them at lupusuk.org.uk/working-with... or if you need physical versions of the booklets, just send me a private message or email [e-mail] with your name and address and I can post them to you.

[Dani83 in reply to Paul_Howard]

Hi paul, thanks have downloaded these. I thought my sickness would come under disability sick days to. Think il have to double check that one with OH. Thanks

[Buffy14]

Hi , when my employer wanted me to leave my job he asked for my doctor's details and asked me if I would give him permission to write to them which I did , I think he wanted my doctor's to say I was unfit for work. I rang ACAS and they were very helpful, she told me that the process of him writing to doctors etc would take months and said if I was very ill I might be better handing my notice in and she said if I did that he would have to pay me what I was owed plus one months wage . Thats what I did because I had terrible back pain I could barely move and I had been going to work like that for months . He got me in the office and said he didn't think I had been showing the same enthusiasm for the job lately , I said I have been coming in here in agony . This was a few months after I had had 3 months off with meningitis which nearly killed me . He was good about that and did pay me for the 3 months but everyone knew the hospital had phoned my children twice saying they had to come to the hospital straight away as they didn't think I was going to make it and so he would have looked bad if he had dismissed me then . If you do decide you are too ill to work make sure you get everything you are owed if you leave on health grounds, your health should come first . Mine was only a part time job , if yours is full time and you have worked there a long time you may be entitled to a lot more .Take care x

[fabwheelie]

you may be entitled to "retirement due to ill-health" and if you are in a works pension scheme this could mean that you get a pension.

In short if they have made "reasonable adjustments" and you still can not work then yes you can get dismissed due to ill health (It happened to me)

In my case I tried for retirement due to ill health, at first was refused that, I got dismissed due to ill-health, and I later won an appeal to get the retirement due to ill-health (which then gave me an ill-health pension). I wrote a post about my experience a while back here is the link to that

healthunlocked.com/lupusuk/...

Let me know if I can be of any more help. It is not an easy process, the whole thing will be very stressful (stress can then cause further flare ups in symptoms)

You will probably have to properly examine whether you really are fit to work or not, and discuss it with your Dr. I really struggled with accepting that I could not work, and that the ill-health retirement option was even looked into. It was a real stress when I also got dismissed whilst going through everthing else. In hindsight giving up work has been one of the best things for me and ensures that I stay "as well as I can be", but at the time I fought against it and I found it hard to accept.

[Dani83 in reply to fabwheelie]

Hi fabwheelie

Thanks it is very stressful, in going to speak to acas again. My department thinks cause they have got me new equipment thats enough! Im only 33. Feels very stressful going thru all this xx

[teacher3 in reply to fabwheelie]

Thanks for this information. I'm currently in 'the cog' of long term sickness, visits to OH and meetings at work. I'm in constant pain with arthiritis plus a few other issues and am waiting for a diagnosis of lupus.

[fabwheelie]

Sending hugs. Yes get full advise. #Dani83

Have a good chat to your union rep but also to all your Drs, GP, consultant etc

I was 37 when I had to retire. For me I was fighting it all the time as I kept thinking that with some time off work I would get better and then be able to get back into work.

It was very hard for me to accept that I could not work.

You will have to seriously consider things like whether you really are well enough to work?, whether you may be better off in another role?, whether part time work may be more suitable?

Beware if you are in a pension scheme and go part time then that may have implications re any pension or ill-health pension that you may be entitled to (in my case the pension amount I got was based on my previous 2 years wages so if I'd gone part time and then had to retire it could have affected my pension amount)

It was stressfull going through meetings with my manager, occ health, going through everything in their sickness/capability policy etc.

At the time it felt as if my manager did not fully understand. In retrospect I think he was just doing his job and trying to follow company policy on how to handle someone who has an awful lot of sick leave

I was really shocked that they could dismiss me (this can only be done as a "last resort" employers do have to try make "reasonable adjustments")

In particular get advise re things like exactly what is a "reasonable adjustment" for you and your employer. Look at things like "is getting you new equipment enough, or can they do more?". "can they give you more sick leave/ disability leave than would normally be allowed before any "capability proceedures" are initiated?"

Use the Lupus UK guides and ask your employer to get a copy/ download the guide for info re "When an employee has lupus - An employer's guide"

Try not to worry, if you are capable of still continuing to work then everyone has to do their best to make that happen

[Dani83]

Hi fabwheelie, thats what i keep doing resting, taking time of, going back to work but then its back to square 1. I did think that its on my list to ask as what counts as a reasonable adjustment. Thank you so much for all your help. Much appreciated 😘.

[Hidden]

Hi. Sending positive thoughts to my Sjogrens friend. As a person who has had to make major life choices whilst working in the public sector full time as a civil servant. Yes I need the money but I had to stop for six months to regroup as the Sjogrens Flaired so bad it ruined my knee so I walked with a cane. I had to see a private Rheni consultant and private go and decided the union could only push so far with reasonable changes. I got signed off long term sick with Sjogrens and RA voice also had gone. Over the six months I saw dietician. Physio and voice coach to test what I could do. Over the months I had water therapy voice work and learned about myself. Yes I was poor but I decided to invest in myself. The result is I have a diploma in nutrition and diet and work via an agency temping. If I flair I leave the job until it passes. I no longer walk with a cane and can sing again. This condition affects so much no one employer exists to make your working life bearable so be very truthful with yourself before adding stress when there are alternatives out there believe me from experience.