Employee Signed Off, but really...?!

Mistral001

Opinion wrote: »

They came in one week in to their two week sick leave, on a Friday evening. What were they paid? I'm not sure why that is relevant but all staff are paid PAYE (handled by our accountant) every Monday, and now the member of staff is being paid SSP (again, dealt with by our accountant.

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I assumed that the employee was working when you said that they came in to work. Were they working or were they just a customer? They either have to be one or the other, officially anyway, I should have thought.

Mattygroves2

As has been said you can't stop someone going out and getting drunk if they are signed off sick for whatever reason. If they had been signed off due to having a cancer diagnosis would your reaction have been different ? That would potentially have looked exactly the same to your other employees as cancer doesn't have to be visible.

If you wouldn't treat the incident as disciplinary if they were working normally but came into the bar on their day off then the fact that they are off sick shouldn't change how you treat the incident.

Just because someone looks perfectly OK on the outside doesn't mean that they aren't ill so if you want to keep the member of staff then just tell your other staff that they are signed off sick and leave it at that.

If you want to get rid of them then as they've been with you less than 2 years you can but you might want to make sure the depression isn't long term as that would then be a potential disability.

Savvy_Sue

Opinion wrote: »

A member of staff coming in on their night off and having a few too many is one thing; a member of staff being signed off sick and coming in and having a few too many, to me, is different, and that's the point of this thread!!

I don't see the distinction. It's unacceptable IMO to be drunk on work premises, in work time our out of it. It's unacceptable to throw up on work premises for any reason other than an illness causing vomiting (and being drunk isn't an illness).

Mattygroves2 wrote: »

If you wouldn't treat the incident as disciplinary if they were working normally but came into the bar on their day off then the fact that they are off sick shouldn't change how you treat the incident.

Just because someone looks perfectly OK on the outside doesn't mean that they aren't ill so if you want to keep the member of staff then just tell your other staff that they are signed off sick and leave it at that.

If you want to get rid of them then as they've been with you less than 2 years you can but you might want to make sure the depression isn't long term as that would then be a potential disability.

That's where you need the legal advice: you can start the disciplinary process while someone is off sick, but you have to tread carefully, although even if her depression does count as a disability it isn't a reason NOT to end employment, you just have to make reasonable adjustments if you can, and I'm not sure how many adjustments you can make in a bar.

I don't even think you'd need this person to come into work for an investigatory meeting if she's too unwell: there is presumably no doubt that she was sick, so all she can do is offer mitigation, not that I can see any.

I suppose one possibility if you think she'll be back and you WANT her back is demotion, if you have someone else who could be a supervisor in her place. BUT DON'T DO ANYTHING without proper legal advice.