Disciplinary over time off sick. Please help!

purple.sarah

I work part time as a cashier for a large supermarket. In the last 6 months I have had some time off ill. Unfortunately my dad was seriously ill in hospital and while visiting him I contracted the norovirus bug that was going round his ward. I was off ill on 2 seperate occasions, with severe vomiting and diarrhea, once for about 4 days once for 3 days. Then more recently I vomited again so had a day off sick as I was concerned I had caught the virus again however on this occasion I think it was triggered by a cold as I recovered quicker and was back at work the next day. At all times I notified work following the correct absence procedure. When I got back I had a meeting with a manager regarding my absence and explained the circumstances however he has now referred it to a disciplinary as I have had too much time off ill. I am not a member of the union, which I know was a mistake. I am just looking for some advice on how to handle the disciplinary.

I thought I was doing the responsible thing by not going into work with a contagious illness. I work as a cashier handling food and interacting with customers. I have printed some information off the internet about norovirus and guidelines saying you should not work with food while you have it. I hope this will help them to see why I thought I was doing the right thing not going into work while I was vomiting.

CFC

Did you ask them at the time whether they wanted you to come in or not?
Being a member of a union is not as much help as you might think, especially in this kind of case.

purple.sarah

CFC wrote: »

Did you ask them at the time whether they wanted you to come in or not?
Being a member of a union is not as much help as you might think, especially in this kind of case.

No I called and told them I couldn't come in because I was vomiting and had a contagious illness. I think they always want you to come in anyway but I did not feel able to. That is interesting to know about the union, thank you.

zzzLazyDaisy

Firstly, try not to get too upset or worried. Provided you have not previously had any warnings for absences your job should not be at risk.

The company should have an absence management policy, although some employers use the disciplinary procedure for absence management. Either way, get hold of a copy and read it carefully. This will tell you what your rights are and what to expect. If this is the first time you have been called up for an interview about your sickness absence, the most you should get is a warning.

It is also important to understand that this is not a misconduct issue. You are not being accused of doing anything wrong. However, even though your illness was genuine, most employers have an absence management policy which triggers when an employee has had a certain number of absences in a given period. The purpose is to find out if there is some underlying reason for the absence and whether there is anything the employer can do to help you to avoid further absences. This will be documented on your file, and taken into account if you continue to have an unacceptable level of absence from work.

lemontart

3 absences in six months probably means it is review of your situation to check if you are still able to do the job or need support to do so, most companies do that now. And as previous poster says you have done nothing wrong and perhaps the word disciplinary as been misused by employer.

Unless of course there are other issues we are not aware of such as performance, timekeeping etc or problems prior to the last 6 months.

marybelle01

CFC wrote: »

Did you ask them at the time whether they wanted you to come in or not?
Being a member of a union is not as much help as you might think, especially in this kind of case.

I disagree. Being a meber of a union is essential. Being a union member in this situation may mean the union cannot "get you off" because the employer is following a lawful policy as other posters have mentioned already. But they can still attend and offer support so that you don't have to go through it alone, and so that you fully understand the process and they can see that employer applies it correctly.

Dunroamin

Did you get a doctor's certificate for any of these occasions? (And, yes, I do know about self certification.)

Evilm

I have seen some of the supermarket companies will consider it a problem if you have more than 2 absences at all - no matter what the reason. It may be an automatic thing and not specific to you.

purple.sarah

Dunroamin wrote: »

Did you get a doctor's certificate for any of these occasions? (And, yes, I do know about self certification.)

I didn't know you could for under a week?

LadyMissA

Dunroamin wrote: »

Did you get a doctor's certificate for any of these occasions? (And, yes, I do know about self certification.)

If you are ill that stops you going in to work it's rare you are well enough to walk to the doctors.

chelle230

our company has the same policy, as do many other retail stores, it's not because they have just decided to pick on you.

A return to work will be filled in after each absence, whether it be one day or one month, but even if it's the same illness on different occasions, it is still 2 absences.
After 3 absences a disciplinary meeting is held and a verbal warning given, then if ill again another meeting and escalated to written, etc. etc.

It is mainly to check that you are ok to come back to work and if you need any further help, and also to put people off throwing random sickies.

You'll have nothing to worry about though, it's just procedure, but it will stay on your file for, usually, 6 months.