Competancy affected by depression - led to dismissal during probation.

Raksha

I have suffered with depression for nearly 18 months (currently being treated with tablets). Most of the time I am fine, but once a month or so I seem to 'dip' and loose the ability to concentrate, get frustrated easily and this leads to poor performance.

I started a new job on 1st June, and was informed I would be having my 3 month 'performance review' today, this was done by way of a formal letter, explaining the possible outcomes and saying I could take a work colleague or Union Rep with me. I chose to take my job share partner as she started at the same time as me and understands the demands of the role. We have both had difficulties picking up a couple of different aspects of the job (which was not as described to us in the interview). These issues were mentioned during the first few weeks, but there hadn't been any more said until last Friday, when I was attempting to carry out a process which had been recently changed - we were told about it very quickly and when I asked around the office, nobody had fully understood it. The upshot was I omitted some details which altered the format of some words in a contract (some sectors were missing and others wrongly formatted with a comma instead of a semi colon). The boss returned them to me, pointing out my errors and said he'd go through it again on Monday.

When he explained it on Monday it all made sense and I was able to complete the operation correctly with no mistakes. I also received more training on web site maintenance, on Monday, Tues and Weds and was able to carry out the tasks I'd been taught with no problems.

At my 'performance review' meeting I was sacked, based on my competence and the fact that my employer didn't believe more training would be beneficial. No minutes of this meeting were taken, I have yet to receive written details of my dismissal, but I understand I will be getting at least one weeks PILON.

No attempt was made to follow any kind of disciplinary process - i.e I got no verbal or written warnings about my performance, even though I have a copy of the Company's Disciplinary and Dismissal Policy and Procedure.

Does anyone have any thoughts?

SarEl

During probation you measure up or you are out - disciplinary procedures are good practice and nothing more until you get to 12 months empliyment. You say that you have depression - did you tell the employer this before you started working for them, did you explain it to them at any point since then, and how do you claim it had anything to do with your performance?

Raksha

Thanks SarEl - Yes, I was asked to complete a health questionnaire on my first day and I mentioned it there. The issue was never raised again.

The condition affects my performance by affecting my concentration, lowering my frustration tolerance levels and making me prone to tearfulness.

SarEl

Raksha wrote: »

The issue was never raised again..

Mentioning that I have had depression on a health questionnaire is not the same thing as saying that I have an ongoing issue with depression and that this may impact on my ability to do my job. If the condition was extant and affecting your ability to do your job then it was your responsibility to raise this. The fact that, hypothetically speaking, the employer never mentions the wheelchair does not mean that the employer is responsible for knowing the fact that the person in a wheelchair can't get into the toilets - they have to mention this fact to the employer to get something done about it.

The same applies to you - if your performance is being adversely impacted upon by something that is a disability (and it is clear that you are approaching this as a disability discrimination issue from the way that you raised it, even though you didn't ask outright) then you should have been saying to your manager that you were struggling at certain times due to the depression. Many people with depression can manage their jobs entirely well, and there is no reason why the employer should know that your failure to perform is related to your depression and not to your inabaility to improve at the job, unless you say so.

Raksha wrote: »

The condition affects my performance by affecting my concentration, lowering my frustration tolerance levels and making me prone to tearfulness.

And you told them this?

Raksha

I don't remember exactley what I put on the form, but I am sure I explained that the condition was current and how it affected me. It's hard to explain, but when I am 'down' I don't realise how it's affecting me - I complete tasks 100% sure I've done them correctly, so I don't feel the need to ask for help.

Do I have a point with regard to the 'Performance Review Meeting' turning into an Exit Meeting? No minutes were taken by either party at the time, there was no offer of an appeal, nor was the meeting adjourned - as per the ACAS guidelines.....

bluenoseam

Within the first year of employment your employer can effectively get rid of you without reason and with little effort to follow any "protocols" so to speak, if it's a progress review then i would personally take it as being implied that if progress is not up to par then you can be let go - although i'm nowhere near a legal mind. Unless the decision is proven to be directly discriminatory then there's not a whole heck of a lot that can be done about it - and well, you'd need to be pretty thick to dismiss someone with tangible evidence that it was based on something which could be taken as discrimination, although i do admit that there will be some out there who aren't as intelligent as they should be!

SarEl

bluenoseam wrote: »

Within the first year of employment your employer can effectively get rid of you without reason and with little effort to follow any "protocols" so to speak, if it's a progress review then i would personally take it as being implied that if progress is not up to par then you can be let go!

I agree. ACAS guidelines are - guidelines! And in the first year of your employment they are less than that - no more than "interesting suggestions". There is no evidence here that the decision was based on anything other than unsatisfactory performance, and that the employer had no reason to assume this performance was due to anything other than the fact that you could not grasp the job to their requirements. You are unclear about what you told them about your condition when you started; you have not brought the matter up with them at any time since then (and you have said yourself that when you are down you may not recognise that you are - but that this is only once a month or so, so there was plenty of other points in time to impress, or to say "I have realised that last week I wasn't up to scrtach and the reason why was..."); and you have asked for no reasonable adjustments and there was no reason for the employer to think you needed any. It would seem that this is purely a matter of the fact that you haven't met their expectations and that is all. I cannot see any discrimination in this.

Gingernutty

I too have a problem with depression and I believe it's affecting my compentency as well.

I noted my condition in my application form, have kept my team leader updated, have asked to be referred to Occupational Health and....................nothing.

When I tried to refer myself to OH the appontment finished with an eye test. !!??

My training is a non-starter, my progress is so poor that I'm effectively going backwards and I'm receiving very little support.

My TL gave out her special work mobile number which I recently used to text updates to her (and a friendly co-worker) when I was taken to hospital after a severe reaction to a new tablet. The following morning she walked into the office and asked where I was. She denied hearing anything from me until my co-worker reminded her of the messages. My TL even had to be reminded that, due to short staffing, she was my immediate line manager! At the next team meeting, although my name wasn't specifically mentioned, we were told that text messages were not an acceptable method of notifying the team of any illness.

She has refused to give me time off for an important psychotherapy appointment after, admittedly, being given very short notice at the end of the month when we are very busy. These appointments are as rare as hens' teeth and now I've turned an appointment down, I've had to go back to the bottom of the waiting list. I explained this to her and was still refused even though she agreed that certain members of staff (the trained and qualified) were allowed to do overtime.

She has queried the amount of time off, queried the doctors' diagnosis, has queried why I need so many appointments and she has insisted that I make up any time taken - hospital policy states that for appointments off site the allowance is two hours (I work in Walsall and live in Wolves so that's a given). I have even taken annual leave for some appointments as they occurred in the middle of the day and I couldn't get them changed to very late or very early. Meanwhile she's very generous with her own flexi leave.

Other members of staff have noticed the way she treats me, one even going as far as to say she seems to hates me.

I'm thinking of going to the doctor and asking to be signed off as I'm starting to think I might be going the way of the OP.

I'm keeping my TL informed (she still seems to doubt I was in hospital), trying to get the help I need and the union aren't an awful lot of use, simply quoting from the Sickness Policy.

What can I do?

Gingernutty

Shameless bump