Can I be fired for being off work with depression/stress?

2

Comments

  • traybro
    traybro Posts: 44 Forumite
    my reply dissapeared but to cut it short, yes they can.
    I too had an operation. I worked for the nhs and had been at the hospital 9 years. They caused me further complications after my hsyterectomy which meant that i needed more time off.I had GP notes but that didnt matter.. they still sacked me. Rightly or wrongly they did sack me, with a medical note.
  • SarEl
    SarEl Posts: 5,683 Forumite
    fiendishly wrote: »
    I'm under the impression that migraines can come under the DDA - disability discrimination act; as people who suffer from them (me too) are much more likely to be off sick than those who don't (odd days though, as you said). I used to work for tesco who have a notoriously strict sickness policy and they disregarded my migraines under the DDA. Do look it up though.

    The Equality Act - the DDA does not exist now. And it would have to be siginificabtly serious migraines to qualify - the OP would need more than a few days off here and there to even stand a chance.

    The advice given to (a) co-operate with the employer in terms of meetings and OH and (b) file a grievance if bullying is going on, are the correct things to do. What isn't on the record doesn't exist.
  • traybro wrote: »
    my reply dissapeared but to cut it short, yes they can.
    I too had an operation. I worked for the nhs and had been at the hospital 9 years. They caused me further complications after my hsyterectomy which meant that i needed more time off.I had GP notes but that didnt matter.. they still sacked me. Rightly or wrongly they did sack me, with a medical note.

    Were you finished up for being incapable of doing your job? Or were you planning to return at some stage to your original job? The only way we can finish people who are off sick is by proving they are incapable of doing the job they were employed to do. Its a long drawn out NHS process which usually takes a few years.
    LBM: 22.12.2010 :j Self-managed DMP start 29.1.2011
    DMP Mutual Support Thread No: 413
  • cazarol
    cazarol Posts: 780
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    Forumite
    Suzykd wrote: »
    Thank you all for your replies.
    You are right, I do need to do this meeting, and I think I am more likely to lose my job if I keep putting it off.
    My other half is going to come with me, so fingers crossed

    Go to the meeting, as hard as it feels and just see what they have to say. Feel the fear and do it anyway.
    Good luck and hugs to you
  • Valli
    Valli Posts: 24,670
    Name Dropper Photogenic First Anniversary First Post
    Forumite
    If you are in a union they will send someone to come to the meeting with you.
    Don't put it DOWN; put it AWAY
    "I would like more sisters, that the taking out of one, might not leave such stillness" Emily Dickinson
    :heart:Janice 1964-2016:heart:

    Thank you Honey Bear
  • wdw2003
    wdw2003 Posts: 235
    First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    Forumite
    A friend was in an almost identical situation and was made redundant after the company decided the job was no longer required. It went to tribunal, which failed, but a major weakness in the case was that a complaint of bullying was never filed at the time.

    As Jarndyce says above, it's vital that you get the bullying complaint on record, as your feelings and view of events isn't enough without that formal complaint. It might seem a very awkward thing for you to do, but you need to do everything you can to protect your position as your company's lawyers certainly won't have your interests at heart.
  • Horace
    Horace Posts: 14,426 Forumite
    Employers can dispense of your services if they feel are you are incapable of doing your job.

    I worked for my ex employer for 12 years and in that time was redeployed to a different post within the same employer. Unfortunately for me I ended up working for a complete toad who systematically turned me from a confident person into a gibbering wreck. I went off sick and had put in a grievance about his behaviour towards me - thankfully for me (in some respects) I was a union representative so knew to keep a diary of every incident of bullying, who from, date and time - I even sent emails to confirm things when I had been asked to do them (toad had a nasty habit of denying all knowledge of ever asking me to do stuff). I attended meetings with Occy Health and my own GP sent reports as did my hospital consultant. I went back to work on a phased return but things were no better and went off again. I was called to a meeting when I was told that I was being made redundant despite the employer having several vacancies all of which I was capable of doing.

    In some respects my ex employer did me a favour because I now work for myself after a period of unemployment. To a certain extent I still have some of the effects still - e.g. mild depression which I have at the moment but all the other health problems I had have either disappeared or are under control with medication. Looking back the best thing they ever did was make me redundant through ill health although I didnt think that at the time.

    Your employer may not allow you to take your OH into the meeting with you and he will have to wait outside. Usually, in these situations you are asked to take a union rep with you or a work colleague - if you are not in a union then it is unlikely that you will get representation especially as this is an ongoing event that has happened before you have taken up membership with them. It is better to work with your employer than against them, if you keep refusing then they are likely to think that you are chancing your arm. Your employer needs to be able to make reasonable adjustment so that you can return to work but they can't do that if you refuse to work with them. Occy Health are there to help you and your employer - they can provide a confidential counselling service and will be able to advise the HR dept as to whether or not you are fit or will be fit to return to work.
  • Suzykd
    Suzykd Posts: 15 Forumite
    Thank you all so much for your posts and support.
    I went to the meeting and they were really supportive, made me an appointment to see the company counsellor, which I did on Monday. She's told me the Occupational Health rule of thumb is that you are not fit to return to work until you have had 10 good days together.
    The problem now is that having seen the consellor on Monday, I stated slipping back into being stressed on Tuesday, but work seem to think that the counsellor waved a magic wand and made me better, and are now demanding that I go on site again to have a meeting about the problems I highlighted, and are complaining that I am signed off again.
    I don't see what they are compaining about, the sick note was issued last Wednesday, 5 days before I saw the counsellor.
    I'm in a union, but have only been in it a couple of weeks, so they won't snd anyone with me. Thye also won't help with problems which arose before joining them, so they are no use to me this time.
    I think work think I'm skiving, so I am thinking of getting my GP to write to them.
  • Uncertain
    Uncertain Posts: 3,901 Forumite
    As stated unfortunately you have no legal right to insist that your other half attends a meeting with your employer. That said, under the circumstances they may well allow it or you may be able to gently suggest that it is the only way in which you would feel able to attend.

    I would also suggest you encourage them to seek a report from your doctor. They may well ask so I would try to get the idea in first. They will have to go through a formal process and pay a fee. You have a legal right to see the report and discuss it with your doctor before it is sent. Having agreed to it being produced you can't then veto it or tell the doctor what to write (it has to be his professional opinion). If you really can't agree the doctor has, by law, to include a statement of your views. However, if your doctor is "on side" there is seldom a problem and it can be very helpful.
  • SarEl
    SarEl Posts: 5,683 Forumite
    I am not at all convinced that your employers think the counsellor has waved a magic wand, nor that they are being unreasonable here. Your fit note is to cover being too sick to do your normal work - a meeting about complaints which you have raised is not your normal work and there is no reason why you should not be able to attend. How do you expect anything to happen about your situation at work if you will not talk to them about it? If you are being bullied and this is the cause of your sickness absence, then the only way to resolve the sickness - for you and for them - is to resolve the issue of the bullying. You cannot do that by refusing to attend meetings to discuss what has happened. If you cannot get union representation, is there no work colleague or a manager that could accompany you? They don't have to be there for anything other than moral support. But in the end I do not see how you expect to be able to return to health if the alleged cause of your ill health is a result of something which is happening in the workplace, and you refuse to talk to them about it so that a solution can be found. I realise that you are very distressed and that talking about it to the employer may be difficult for you - but you are not helping yourself by preventing them from taking the process forward. You need a solution if you are going to get better and be able to return to work.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 342.2K Banking & Borrowing
  • 249.8K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.3K Spending & Discounts
  • 234.4K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 606.7K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 172.7K Life & Family
  • 247.2K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.8K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards