Hello all ,
I currently work as a mechanical maintenance engineer so have to do a bit of walking and climbing stairs etc as it's a large site . I also do a on call rota every few weeks but I'm starting to really struggle with fatigue and muscle and joint pain particularly arms and legs .
Can I ask my employer about managing my work load is thyroid disease covered by disability at work act in the uk
No it isn't one of the specifically named conditions such as MS, cancer, HIV etc. (Schedule 1, Part 1 of the Equality Act 2010 and in Regulation 7 of the Equality Act 2010 (Disability) Regulations 2010. However any impairment that you experience as a result of having the condition may give you eligibility to expect reasonable adjustments be made. A condition has to have a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out day-to-day activities.
Your impairment doesn’t have to stop you doing anything, as long as it makes it harder. It might cause you pain, make things take much longer than they should or mean that you’re unable to do an activity more than once, for you to be eligible. Alternatively if you have a long-term condition that’s getting worse, the effect on your day-to-day activities now, doesn’t have to be substantial as long as it’s likely to become substantial in the future, ie it is a ‘progressive condition’.
However, are you certain/have ruled out that your symptoms aren't due to another condition, or to being inadequately medicated, or to the effects of poor nutrition? Do you have a full set of thyroid function test results, and have you had at least key vitamins and minerals tested recently, such as calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, folate, & ferritin? If so, you could post results and their respective reference ranges here if you wish, for folks to comment.
Your GP should prescribe sufficient thyroid hormones to bring your TSH to 1 or lower. Many wrongly keep us within the range which could be up to 5.
Also make sure vitamins/minerals are optimal, i.e. B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate.
You need a new blood test, blood draw should be at the very earliest, fasting (you can drink water) and allow a gap of 24 hours between your last dose of levo and the test and take afterwards. This helps to keep your TSH at its highest as that seems to be all the doctor checks.
You can get a Full Thyroid Fundtion Test privately, home postal tests if GP wont do all.
You need TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3 and thyroid antibodies. Both the Frees should be in the upper part of the ranges, TSH 1 or lower.
Ive been covered under the disability act as anything long term is covered, we are lucky to have on site OHS doctors that advise anyone with ill health. I now have Hypothyroidism issues due to meds which is slowly improving but fatigue is still a big issue which im working on from guidance from here.
My GP writes Fit Notes which say reduced days of working this keeps you in work. Then the OHS Dr set perameters for resonable adjustments, I was working reduced Days to have a rest inbetween working days. My manager has been twitchy but reading the equality act made me stand firm my output of work is definatly not been too much of an issue. Ive started to add in an extra 2 mornings to start building it up again as per OHS advice slowly. There is talk they might move my role if this is longterm which I dont want, so praying I feel better but im also looking for longer term to find a less stressfull career.
I manage shift working engineers and with fit notes and OHS's guidance we try to give them less night shifts and reduced working patterns or light duties if required dependant on the illness. This will always be backed up by a GP/ Consultant fitnote.
Hope this helps wishing you well x
Yes. I have Hashimoto’s and recently had a serious decline in my health due to aspects of my work. With the support of my GP and the employers occupational health doctor, my employer was required to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to my role. In the report to my employer from the occupational health service, it quoted the Equalities Act and the responsibilities of employers in supporting staff with long term chronic health conditions including thyroid disfunction.
As long as you aren’t in Northern Ireland then the relevant act is The Equality Act 2010. I believe you would be covered based on this criteria:
“ You’re disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.”
Conditions such as asthma and diabetes are covered, so I can’t see that diagnosed thyroid conditions would be any different.
I don’t know what your company is like as an employer but it should have policies that cover things like disability, flexible working, etc. It could be worth looking for these, talking to HR or, if you are in a union, talking to the union rep.
I’m happy to do some more digging (I used to work in HR, with a particular interest in disability rights) if you pm me more details.
As previous posts have said, you're covered under the Equalities Act 2010 and entitled to request "reasonable adjustments".
The ACAS website's quite good and they were helpful when I called them.
acas.org.uk/index.aspx?arti...
This is also interesting reading:
atlanticchambers.co.uk/news...
Good luck!
Thank you all so much for great help and taking the time to reply . My employer are very good actually.
I might try and get them to take me off the call out rota as evenings are a problem with tiredness after a day at work .
gov.uk/definition-of-disabi...
According to the Equalities Act 2010
You’re disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.
What ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ mean
‘substantial’ is more than minor or trivial, e.g. it takes much longer than it usually would to complete a daily task like getting dressed
‘long-term’ means 12 months or more, e.g. a breathing condition that develops as a result of a lung infection.
I went to my Occupational Health unit at work and discussed my condition. They agreed that because it is long term and has a negative effect on my ability to do my normal daily work it is a disability. My boss is great and we have made reasonable adjustments to my work.
I can do work from home when necessary and the sickness policy has taken account of my need for more periods off work but I cant have too many days off work.
I work out of hours 1 in 8 weeks which has a massive impact on me so I may have to give that up sooner rather than later.
Hyperthyroid + shift work
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Hypothyroidism and time off work
