Epileptic daughter sacked

madmuvva

Hello all, I'm posting on behalf of my daughter. She's been working for a national restaurant chain (Ask) as a server since 1st September 2014. She is epileptic and had made her employers aware of this. This last weekend she had a serious of seizures (she assumes - she was unconscious) and her flat mate found her on her bedroom floor with carpet burns to her face.

Seizures exhaust her and confuse her so consequently she missed work on Saturday and spent most of Sunday asleep, recovering. She tells me she woke up sometime today, realised she had missed the whole weekend and went straight to work to apologise and tell them why. Her manager said that as she hadn't turned up and not contacted them, they assumed she had resigned. She told them she would have told them had she not been unconscious but was told she had lost her job. She is devastated. Any advice?

Marktheshark

Why did her flat mates not call an Ambulance ?

She is going to find it hard why she could not get any type of message to work.

Takeaway_Addict

Could she really not have let them know Saturday considering the open late?

Southend1

Is she a union member? If so her rep will be able to support her with this

madmuvva

1. She seizured in her room, the flatmates have their own room. 2. It's hard to message when you are unconscious. 3. The recovery period is different for each epileptic 4. No union membership

cannyscot_2

The Equality Act 2010

I guess you could ask them to reconsider and state above explaining as you have that long term disability and they should take that into account and accommodate. You need to be clear on why she did not contact as it isn't obvious if you are not epileptic and in most circumstances you would expect the employee to contact. I guess they could argue she should have had some type of system in place to avoid but you can equally try arguing they should accomodate.

madmuvva

Quote "Because as I said, I hadn't been getting much sleep, so I took a sleeping tablets on Friday night so I would be all awake and on it for Valentine's Day? And the next thing I know I wake up in the lounge ., so Must've had a few seizures by the looks of my face"

Me: had you taken them before? when did you wake up? its hard explaining away 48 hours

Daughter: No I hadn't, I just wanted to be on it for valentines but it backfired obviously .. I woke up about 1 in the morning on Monday morning, and fell back asleep again and woke back up at 3, and went straight to ask
Well that's what happened mum, well yes I suppose so! But I think I had a fit mid sleep on Saturday morning, then fitted again.

Takeaway_Addict

cannyscot wrote: »

The Equality Act 2010

I guess you could ask them to reconsider and state above explaining as you have that long term disability and they should take that into account and accommodate. You need to be clear on why she did not contact as it isn't obvious if you are not epileptic and in most circumstances you would expect the employee to contact. I guess they could argue she should have had some type of system in place to avoid but you can equally try arguing they should accomodate.

This. If this is the only time since start then it is quite harsh of the employer to not allow some leeway but the employer does need to be able to plan efficiently and if this occurs regularly then your daughter should sort out a plan to let her employer know in a more reasonable time.

The other issue though is how far you want to take this because ultimately you would have to go through a tribunal to get any redress if the employer still refuse to acknowledge it.

Does she have any proof she informed them? Ie was it in writing anywhere?

Marktheshark

They have to accommodate under disability law but they also have to provide a safe working environment.
Serving surely includes serving hot liquids, if she can black out without warning as she states the restaurant would have a very good defence.
It's a difficult one.

madmuvva

This is the only time its happened. She has a long term condition and is still under the neuro team at the hospital. She is really upset (she's 24 and has only been epileptic since 17 after a couple of brain ops) and says she doesn't feel she can go back to work there but doesn't think they should get away with it either.

madmuvva

When she's awake she gets 'notice' and can make herself safe 99.9% of the time, so is therefore in as much risk of harm as you or I would be tripping over. When she's asleep then obviously she cannot feel the 'cues', I think they are called auras.