employee no longer fit for work - what to do??

Savvy_Sue

It's a bit unclear to me exactly what the OP's role within the organisation is. If they are this chap's manager, or responsible for HR matters, then I'd expect them to KNOW what's on his fit notes. However I wouldn't expect this information to be freely available to all staff, unless he chooses to share it.

Tiddlywinks

yas212 wrote: »

hi guys,

So we're a small company of 6 people in total. We have only have one guy in the warehouse, who has been working here for 12 years. He's in his late 50's now, he doesn't take great care of himself, and he's recently been in hospital for 3 weeks. Not sure exactly what his sickness is, but I've been told it was pneumonia.
He is definitely not fit at all for the job anymore, as it involves heavy physical labour which he was struggling with even before he went into hospital. We've often had to employ temporary help, but as a small business we can't really afford to do this constantly, and if there isn't anything else we can give him to do within our organisation.
What is the best steps to take? Do I need to access his medical notes? Which organisation is best to speak to for advice? Any help is greatly appreciated.

OP - are you an officer of the company, his manager, the business owner or what?

As a responsible employer you should already have processes in place to address absence management.

You should also know that it is unacceptable to go onto a public forum and accuse you employee of not taking care of himself... how many companies will there be right now who only have six employees and have a warehouseman (in his 50s with 12 years employment) who has been off with pneumonia? You've probably identified the individual (and your company) by giving all of this information here.

You need to engage an HR professional to handle this situation - why? Because you owe it to your employees to see that they have fair and lawful treatment at work.

Takeaway_Addict

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

OP - are you an officer of the company, his manager, the business owner or what?

As a responsible employer you should already have processes in place to address absence management.

You should also know that it is unacceptable to go onto a public forum and accuse you employee of not taking care of himself... how many companies will there be right now who only have six employees and have a warehouseman (in his 50s with 12 years employment) who has been off with pneumonia? You've probably identified the individual (and your company) by giving all of this information here.

You need to engage an HR professional to handle this situation - why? Because you owe it to your employees to see that they have fair and lawful treatment at work.

Don't be ridiculous.

sangie595

Takeaway_Addict wrote: »

Don't be ridiculous.

Not so ridiculous. Unlikely perhaps, but all it takes is the right person reading these posts and putting two and two together. There's an awful lot of information given on here, and it would make rather interesting reading for an employment tribunal in the right hands. People are often enough warned about facebook and twitter - MSE is just another form of social media, and a user name doesn't make it anonymous if you give away so many details.

patman99

Rather than reviewing the worker's capabilities, maybe it's time to review your materials handling procedures.

For instance, doe he have to regularly lift boxes he has just packed from the floor ?. If so, get him a bench.
Working off pallets ?. Do you have a pallet lifter capable of lifting pallets to waist hieght ?.

Maybe it is time to invest in such equipment.

The easier you make the job, the faster you will see the employee work.

andygb

Takeaway_Addict wrote: »

Don't be ridiculous.

It is relatively easy to deduce who someone is online, if they post enough information which all adds up.
The more intelligent amongst us will "embroider" or be "creative" with certain "facts", changing important details - where we live, what our hobbies are etc.
I am not a fan of FB, because I see time after time, people who divulge all their important information, and then make stupid comments about friends, relations and worst of all employers and co-workers.

andygb

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

OP - are you an officer of the company, his manager, the business owner or what?

As a responsible employer you should already have processes in place to address absence management.

You should also know that it is unacceptable to go onto a public forum and accuse you employee of not taking care of himself... how many companies will there be right now who only have six employees and have a warehouseman (in his 50s with 12 years employment) who has been off with pneumonia? You've probably identified the individual (and your company) by giving all of this information here.

You need to engage an HR professional to handle this situation - why? Because you owe it to your employees to see that they have fair and lawful treatment at work.

Hopefully the OP will find themselves on the wrong side of an industrial tribunal in the not so distant future. I speak from experience, having seen a family member who was very ill, outed on social media by a manager who accused her of skiving to all and sundry, although to be fair it was FB, so fairly easy to trace.

daytona0

andygb wrote: »

It is relatively easy to deduce who someone is online, if they post enough information which all adds up.
The more intelligent amongst us will "embroider" or be "creative" with certain "facts", changing important details - where we live, what our hobbies are etc.
I am not a fan of FB, because I see time after time, people who divulge all their important information, and then make stupid comments about friends, relations and worst of all employers and co-workers.

This is so true!

I very recently responded to a thread regarding an insurance claim. I was able to deduce that it was potentially fraudulent and a further investigation yielded information as to their LIKELY home town, nationality, age, date of birth and a few more bits of information. This was all WITHOUT using facebook. If I was in the insurance game then I would be all over that particular user.

It is super scary what you can find out about people online! I would be confident that one could identify me with just the daytona0 username alone, for example! Thankfully I haven't posted anything which is going to bring up a red flag. That is, as you've said, the key. If you're going to discuss potentially sensitive matters then you have to be as unclear and ambiguous as possible.

EDIT: Sadly the user in question doesn't accept PMs so I can't be bold and state it directly to them privately, especially when they have a habit of asking MSE mods to delete whole threads with crucial advice.

theoretica

I agree that if the OP hasn't embroidered anything then readers might be able to identify the company, but is not taking care of himself such an unacceptable accusation? I could apply it to about half my colleagues: smoking, poor diets, lack of exercise, lack of sleep ...

[Deleted User]

sangie595 wrote: »

Not so ridiculous. Unlikely perhaps, but all it takes is the right person reading these posts and putting two and two together. There's an awful lot of information given on here, and it would make rather interesting reading for an employment tribunal in the right hands. People are often enough warned about facebook and twitter - MSE is just another form of social media, and a user name doesn't make it anonymous if you give away so many details.

Why you should only post the truth then.