resigning whilst off sick

gtitim · 1 November 2006 at 7:49PM

hi. ive been on here a while, but just got round to registering. i have a problem i need advice on. i am currently off sick from my job with stress. i have put the majority of the stress down to the job i do, and realistically cant face going back to it. i am applying for other jobs whilst off sick. my contract says i have to give 4 weeks notice to leave. can i do this whilst sick? would i have to go back to work for 4 weeks, or would i be able to do my notice on the sick? i dont have enough holidays left to cover my notice.
should i get another job, do i have to tell my new employer that i left whilst off with stress, or could i give them a different reason. i am hoping that my gp will fill my sick note in as something other than stress ie insomnia, depression etc as i think that having a stress sickness on my record will prevent me from getting a new job.

any advice on what to do would be muchly appreciated as i really don't know how to move on.

hjb123 · 1 November 2006 at 8:05PM

Hiya,

How long have you been off sick for? Is there anyway your employers could terminate the contract? What pay/benefits are you receiving at the moment?

Have a look in your contract and see if there is anything written in there. Could you perhaps speak to your employer and see if you are able to reach a compromise?

When I first went off sick I was on full pay for 18 weeks then went onto SSP for about a month before my employers terminated (with my consent) my contract and I got another 4 weeks full pay - whether your employers operate a system or anything like that?

There was also another similiar thread on HERE and HERE and HERE
recently.

Lady_E · 1 November 2006 at 8:09PM

Dont know if this helps . I left my previous very stressful job after a period of 5 weeks sick , which my GP signed the cert as "work related stress".I resumed to the job after deciding that I had to do something positive . I asked to be placed onto a different team (still doing the same job) and after a week handed in my resignation. My current employers were aware that I had work related sickness and were very understanding. I was given an opportunity at the interview to explain my decision , and to be honest I felt that having it out in the open was one of the reasons I got this job . Life is too short and at the end of the day do you live to work or work to live?
It might be an idea to speak to your HR and find out can they put you into a less demanding job if you manage to resume with GP permission , that will buy you some time . Good luck I really feel for you , but I promise there is light at the end of the tunnel

gtitim · 1 November 2006 at 8:10PM

i have only been off a few days and am currently self certificated. i am entitled to 40 days sick at full pay and then SSP after that( have 37 days left) . I am due at the GPs on friday, and i know he will put me off for a couple of weeks. my two biggest concerns are thatit will go on my record as stress, whcih i wouldn't want any future employes to know about really, and also should i find a new job and want to leave in less than my 4 wks notice, could they take me to court etc for breach of contract??

hjb123 · 1 November 2006 at 8:15PM

You have options really:

1. you continue on being sick but being employed - you can look for another job while you are off sick, if the sick time comes to an end you could always return to work for a bit then hand in the notice - I guess this depends on the level of stress and how you feel about the job/work
2. you hand in your notice and claim benefits (if you can) while you try finding another job

It may well go down on your record as having been off sick/stress but theres not really that much you can do I dont think. I have been off work now for almost 2 years and I am going to have to explain to prospective employers about the illness and promote myself when I try getting back to work

They probably wouldnt take you to court for breach of contract - you might just not get paid for the notice - its best to try and come to some sort of amicable agreement really though.

gerretl · 1 November 2006 at 9:14PM

Is the work related stress caused by the demands of the work, or colleagues?
How long have you been employed by the company?
I ask, because I was in a very similar poistion. I cannot put all the details on the forum, but, if you give some details of where the stress originated from, I may be able to help.

gtitim · 1 November 2006 at 11:22PM

stress is down to the job to be honest. working long, unsociable hours, increased workloads, lack of staffing, having a severe knock on effect of my home life.
also, not had proper break from work as used all my holidays for my wedding in sept and seems like i haven't stopped. also have some problems within immediate family that i do not wish to discuss with my work unless i have to.

i have been with the company for 22 months now, and went to them for help months ago when the hours were getting silly. no help given. now they exxpect us to work late nights (10.30 + ) followed by early starts (06.30) plus we can't get meal breaks, etc. i am aware that this is in breach of the working times directives but unfortunately the industry i am in is exempt from them. at present i have been working in excess of 50 hours per week, which if you count travelling to and from work has been over 60, and i have found i cannot survive on 5 hours sleep per night, let alne have a soocial life.

CFC · 2 November 2006 at 3:44AM

There is no problem in resigning while you are off sick. More germane to the point may be that an employer may be inclined to consider that if you are well enough to be going to job interviews while you are off sick, that you are insufficiently sick to be paid sickpay by the company. Whether they pay it or not or stop it or not under those circumstances will be down to what is in your contract and what the custom is at your workplace.

Unless you are a vital employee who the whole business depends on, and you have a load of money in the bank that they can take, no employer is ever going to sue you for breach of contract if you didn't give the amount of notice required by your contract. Even if you were the lynchpin employee, it would be resolved between you. It just ain't going to happen, ever.

rio · 2 November 2006 at 10:40AM

If you have asked the company for help re staffing etc and they haven't responded you might be able to start a grievence procedure against them. It might be well worth contacting your union (I'd be inclined to do this anyhow) and find out their thoughts on this matter. If you have highlighted your predicament to management you might well be able to come to some sort of agreement. This happened to a colleague of my husband's he ended up being moved to another department where there was less stress, and he is now doing really well there.

resigning whilst off sick

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