Dismissal due to ill helath

amaru

Hello I have just been dismissed due to my health. My problem is that I got injured at work (tendon damage in arm) and took 4 week off work. I came back and all was fine then I suffered same injury. I have been off work since (6 weeks) and had various meetings with the company and how they can support me which is good. Today i go for meeting and get dismissed as I am not fulfilling my contracted hours due to me being off work.

What i would like to know is it right for them to dismiss me for failure to fulfill contracted hours even though the injury was caused at work. I have lost this job and my second job now as i struggle to use my arm. I have worked for the company for 20 months. It just feels like a kick in teeth that i get injured then sack for taking time off work.

Any help or advice would be great. Thanks

McKneff

What was the nature of your accident, was it fully documented in the accident book. Was it your fault. Please give more detailed information.

dmg24

Was the injury caused by negligence on the part of the employer?

Is it likely that you would have been able to return to work in the near future?

Have you been given any warnings prior to today?

amaru

I worked in a warehouse where there is a lot of lifting involved. Both accidents were reported and put in accident book and on second occasions i was taken to hospital. According to my doctor the injury is a partly torn tendon although i will know more when i go to hospital for more tests. As for blame i would not put full blame on employer but we have arm mounted terminals with a finger scanner on index finger and sometimes when lifting you tend to put more weight on free arm.

As for warnings. I was warned last time i took the time off due to injury and put on a attendance stage. I do not know if i could return to work or not as i have to wait for results from hospital to confirm extent of damage.

I understand my employers view as they need a job doing and i am not currently able to do it. What gets me is that i am unable to do my job through no fault of my own.

Emmzi

yes they can dismiss, if they have followed their own internal procedures correctly.

however if it was an accident at work you can put in a claim, poss. against their insurance. I hope it was in the accident book as this will help.

dmg24

Whilst this may not be your fault, it does not appear to be the fault of your employer.

Assuming the employers attendance/ sickness absence policy was followed, I cannot see anything irregular about your dismissal.

amaru

Also as some of you may know that in warehouses there is rarely a job you can do one handed/armed. Me and employer talked about other job alternatives but at this moment in time there is no vacancies or jobs i can do one handed/armed. On a side note, when i first got injury i was off work for 4 week yet a fellow worker suffered a similar injury outsude work hours and was allowed to continue working on light duties. The reason i was given was at the time of my injury there was no light duties but was with him. I am talking a space of a week in between mine and workers injury.

Like i say at the moment it just feels like a kick in teeth. I lose 2 jobs and christmas just few week away.

Raksha

Was any kind of review of the procedure which lead to your first injury carried out and any changes implemented as a result of that review?

amaru

Yes all is in the accident books. Although i can claim it will not help me at the present time and will take months to sort out. In the mean time i am left without any job and as it looks at moment i will not be allowed to work for the foreseeable future. I think main problem i have now is that i do not know what to do next. Everything was going along nicely and this happens and back to square 1. My hospital appointment to see specialist is at start of january and thought they would wait and see outcome of tests. I was not recieving company sick just the SSP.

Thanks for time and help.

In reply to Raksha. Yes there was an investigation and nothing came of it.

ckerrd

Can I ask what you mean by "nothing came of it"?

An accident where a person is injured should have some outcome.

jdturk

why didn't you put the item down to scan it rather than rest it one arm?