Disability act 2010 and pbc

[meandmypbc]

I work for the nhs and have been told by atos(OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH ) that I have a disability...because I have an illness that will last for longer than 12 months.Does anyone out there have similiar experiences ?

[Anne123_45]

Yes I work for civil service and qualify for disability leave for appointments and related absences don't get me the treaded flag to hr... I'm still careful as I feel they're always looking to manage people out of the work place x

[jenny66]

I also work for the nhs, but was told by occupational health, that i didnt qualify for disability. Even though i have been in hosp 4 times in the last 2 years.

[Foundry9]

I worked for the NHS for 13 years and my bosses were also my GP's. Not once did they recognise the PBC as a disability in any way! They always honoured my out patient appts but they did for everyone else.

PBC is overlooked in my experience (in the work place) No one knows enough about it, not even GP's. If it was diabetes or heart problems then they can deal with this.

Never got any understanding from my manager if I was finding it difficult to stay awake by late afternoon, she used to go to the shop and by me some chocolate for energy! Didn't care that I had the crappy early shifts and some very late shifts, use to come home and go straight to bed.

Anyway, I resigned in Feb this year, and now looking for something less stressful to do.

Biggest mistake I ever made was staying loyal to them for all those years.

[Foundry9]

And as for being managed out of work, your right. Even though they are not legally supposed to to do it they find a way round it.

It took them about a year to push me hard enough to resign, I gave up in the end, I was exhausted with it all.

Your health is more important, life is too short. Look after number one in future.

[Tigger858]

Yes I was told by my doctor that I was technically disabled. My employer made life difficult for me by refusing a reasonable request. When I said he had to comply because of my condition he referred me to OHS. Well that came back and bit him lol. I ended up with a list of adjustments he had to make. The idiot then told me because I wasn't complaining, getting on with my job and producing results it was his " perception" that there was nothing wrong with me. In reality I was struggling every day. I had to eventually apply for ill health retirement. Best thing I ever did. Oh and I worked for a trade union !

[nessiewolfe in reply to Tigger858]

I have the same issue at my work thanks for posting

[meandmypbc in reply to nessiewolfe]

Hi nessie wolfe,

please read SC49 below, very encouraging.I have just seen my gp and he has signed me off again, because of the fatigueand stress of going back to work, to be honest I only have been hanging on because I thought they may dismiss me, nhs are hot on thatat the moment.my gp told me that they wouldnt do that because I am covered under the equality act 2010.This is encouraging.but to be honest all I am doing at tge moment is resting and sleeping, getting my energy levels back up for the fight ahead of me.

good luck to you too

[meandmypbc]

Thanks girls !!! Its a long old road I have ahead of me, but yes my health means everything x

[LindaSusan]

I was told by our health care provider that they would no longer cover me for PBC as it is an ongoing condition and not necessarily life threatening

[ReiversMrs]

Morning All, this is the link to the act now called the Equality Act

gov.uk/definition-of-disabi...,

Im a civil servant and only recently beed diagnsed with PBC but asked for a referral to ATOS when I was told I was using my mental health as an excuse. I have had OCD for 35 years and its mostly under control but was triggered last work due to the way I was been treat, I havnt been sick since 2001 ( with one days diahorrea) so I asked to be referred to OHS and ATOS supported me using the Equality Act and my experience was a positive one, but like I said the PBC is currenly not a problem for me, so Good Luck

[Lockness]

Until recently I worked for the NHS and was informed of this. I have just started a new job within Education and had to have an interview with Occi Health, who also informed me that this was the case.

[SC49]

the disability discrimination legislation is a really important piece of legislation for anyone with PBC who has symptoms which affect their day to day life. If your employer accepts that you are disabled under the legislation then they have a duty to make reasonable adjustments to your job. The reasonable adjustments are supposed to make it easier for you to do your job and can include adapting your workplace, changing your hours, providing you with support to do your job.

The key to the legislation is being able to demonstrate that you have a long term health condition that has a substantial impact on your day to day life. Some more enlightened employers will learn about PBC and will be happy to accept that it can have a substantial impact on people. Others will have to be persuaded.

The best way to persuade them is to try to keep a record/ diary of how the illness affects you personally and to gather up as much useful information as you can get about PBC generally. The pBC foundation leaflets are good sources of information.

I think it's really important to get good information and to keep good records. We tend to find ways of accommodating the symptoms into our lives and we forget some of the symptoms and difficulties because we are so used to them. So if you have to sleep during the day, you organise your life to accommodate it and then you get so used to doing it, it becomes your new 'normal' and you forget that it's a change you've had to make to get through the day. Examples from my own life are that I don't cook unless there is another person in the house because my concentration is so poor that I forget that I have cooking on - it's a miracle that i have not burned the house down. I also tend to do housework in the evenings because it doesn't matter if I fall asleep after. Those kind of wee adjustments to your life are important. You have probably done similar things in work - maybe changing how you do things, taking extra time to do things, getting help with things you could have done on your own before - anything where you have adjusted your life to accommodate your illness. Keep the records so that you can explain to your employer why you believe that you fall within the provisions of the legislation.

If you can get the support of your Union to speak to your employer then talk to your union rep as soon as possible. I am disgusted that Tigger858 was so poorly treated by a union - they should be ashamed of themselves. If you can't get support from a union, you can get assistance from disability rights organisations, PBC Foundation, the equality commission - there are many organisations out there who will help you to make your case.

As far as Blue Badges are concerned, it depends on the extent of your symptoms and how they affect your mobility. If you are in receipt of PIP/ DLA for mobility problems, it's probably worth applying or at least talking to your local authority.

[meandmypbc in reply to SC49]

Thank you SC49, you have given me hope and a bit of a push...not to give up..yet x

[Tigger858 in reply to SC49]

Thanks for your support. I was more hurt and disappointed in the way I was treated by my employer after 22 years service. I would however echo your advice to seek support from your union rep. As a full time official I was a bit like the cobblers children, the worst shod. If I had been representing a member I would have secured a much better outcome, unfortunately I was too ill and worn out to fight on. I am however glad to be finished. Just having no stress and not driving 600 miles a week has made a big difference to my daily life.

[SC49]

never give up. As far as I can see,most people have to try a few times to get what they need.Get as much support as you can xx

[Tessa]

Hi there. You are covered by the Equality Act 2010. I took my employers (NHS) and won. I was a union rep.

[Alley27]

Hi guys I find these stories very hopeful. I have AIH/PBC overlap am unemployed and looking for work. I am not 100% well but financially I struggle because m y hubby works but we are on a low income. I applied for a job about 12 months ago, I got into the office and was going well in the interview and when it came to health questionnaire, and she saw autoimmune liver disease on there she said that she was terribly sorry, that there was a mistake in me applying for the job due to the fact that AIH/PBC meant I would not be able to carry out my duties properly and that AIH means I could infect clients.....I explained that it was not infectious, and that if my hours were flexible, as the ad indicated they would be I would be able to cope. I was refused the job there and then and since I am finding it very difficult to get employment. I am 50 next month and I do get some really dreadful days but am willing and want to work despite my disability...I say disability but have never considered I might be. These diseases affect my life dramatically what with chronic fatigue, brain fog and aches and pains. It takes me hours/days to recover from any kind of activity including house work and , now I need to admit that I am disabled.

I reported the business who took offence at my AIH/PBC and they were reprimanded, but it does not make my life any easier the fact we are a low income family who cannot afford a healthy diet....I have not had fruit for over 5 weeks now.....unfortunately this is how it is now and not just for me xx