Sick Pay

dapri71

Hi, im not sure if this is in the right place but im after some advice & help. My partner has MS & she is a vender for a large internet security company (she has been there for over 7 years). Over the past 12 months her MS has got worse, so worse that she can no longer drive & get into the office. She has been working from home since January 2011 with no problems, now her manager at the internet security company has decided that this isn’t working & he needs her in the office at least 3 days a week, even though he can’t come up with a reason for this......anyway she is fighting this at the moment but the latest development is she has been told she has to be in the office by Monday 5th December of they will mark her down as absent without leave even though the has provided a “fit for work note” from her GP stating she is only fit to work from home due to the effects of MS. She has been told by the company that “loan” her out to the internet security company that they will mark her down as “sick” & she will only be able to get SSP, they seem to have ignored what her GP has said. In the past when she has been off ill due to her MS the internet security company has pain her full sick pay, can they now decide not to pay this. I know this is long winded & im sorry.
Any advice would be helpful. Thanks

t0rt0ise

What does her contract or terms and conditions of employment say about sick pay? If it doesn't say anything then they can do what they like. They also don't have to take much notice of what the doctor suggests as it is only a suggestion.

dapri71

We are not sure what her contract says, she signed it over 7 years ago & its in her desk at the office......just seems worng that they have paid her sick pay in the past, on more than 1 occasion, but now just 1 manager is trying his best to get rid of her then they wont pay it......god it makes you so proud to be British.....equality and diversity rights at its best.

Fleago

dapri71, your wife may be able to get help with paying for taxis to work from the DWP's Access to Work programme. The website is here and includes a link to their contact centres.

Hope this helps.

Uncertain

t0rt0ise wrote: »

What does her contract or terms and conditions of employment say about sick pay? If it doesn't say anything then they can do what they like. They also don't have to take much notice of what the doctor suggests as it is only a suggestion.

Not quite.....

The firm don't have to follow the doctor's suggestions as to the limited work he considers her fit for but if they choose not to then they must treat her as off sick. Under these circumstances she is not absent without leave.

Obviously she is only entitled to SSP unless her contract provides for company sick pay. All too often company sick pay is "discretionary" which means the company can (within certain limits) pay it or not as they choose. However not all contracts are worded this way so she may have a contractual right to company sick pay for a certain period.

However, MS is (I am 99% certain) a disability for employment purposes so this means the company must make "reasonable adjustments" to try and accommodate her needs. Are the company formally aware of her disability?

dapri71

Hi, the company know she has MS, they knew this when they offered her the position over 7 years ago. They have offered reasonable adjustments to her, she has been told that she must be in the office 3 days a week & she can work from home 2 days per week, they haven’t took into account that she cannot get into the office due to her MS getting worse.
She has been doing at least 85%, if not more, of her work from home for nearly 1 year now & there hasn’t been an issue, well apart from 1 manager saying he doesn’t like it. She has also offered to job share but they don’t want this, the reason given to her being needed in the office for is just in case said manager needs to “stick his head out of his office door if something urgent come along. To me these are not reasonable adjustments but this is a massive company & they seem to be able to get away with treating people like this.

Uncertain

dapri71 wrote: »

To me these are not reasonable adjustments but this is a massive company & they seem to be able to get away with treating people like this.[/SIZE][/FONT]

Legally they may or may not be "reasonable" I suspect it is a close call.

Hopefully somebody more expert than me will see this thread and comment.

Do you have any access to free legal advice, either from a trade union or maybe your house insurance provides cover - it often does?

It would also be worth speaking to the MS charities as they should have access to specialist advice.

Emmzi

11 months is a long time to be working from home with no remissions.

Is the problem that she is tired, that she is having muscle control problems that prevent her driving, or what? (I have MS myself and know the symptoms can be very variable.)

TBH if she truly hasn't been in since January I can see how this would lead to communications problems over time.

Has she had a referral to occupational health, and if not, has she asked for one? How is she managing or treating her condition?

You talk about a company loaning her out. If at the end of the day they are serving a customer, and the customer says they want a bum on a seat in the office, there are no reasonable adjustments that can be made to that job. What exactly is the contract/ employee/ place of work status?

Flexible start/ finish times, reduced days n the office, would be reasonable adjustments. She may have to weigh that up against overall health and cost of taxis.

The employer is under no obligation to bend over backwards - that is not "reasonable."