Dismissal due to Depression?

gabriel1980

I'm writing on behalf of a friend.


Said friend is currently employed at a well-known debt recovery firm. He is currently suffering from depression and is taking anti-depressants. I give him a lift home every night and he told me that his manager did him a favour by not giving him a "final warning" at a meeting they had after he had been off a two days after having a breakdown at work.


He was given a written warning. This leads me to believe he 's has a verbal warning and a written warning previous to this if the manager was considering a final warning.


Basically my question is can an employer take disciplinary action against workers suffering from depression? He has doctor's notes which have been handed in. My worry for him is that he will get sacked for missing work due to depression. He has not accepted being signed off as the company doesn't offer sick pay, only statutory.


I have googled this, obviously, and can't find anything definite about his stance. I've suffered from depression myself in the past, but always kept working as I felt it more beneficial than being signed off.


Any help would be appreciated.

Browntoa

How long has he worked for them ?

sangie595

If there is a clear sickness absence policy, then yes, anyone can be dismissed for being off sick - the reason for the sickness or whether there are fit notes isn't relevant. Having a recognised disability MAY mean that he would get some allowances made - but it isn't compulsory that an employer must do it.

Undervalued

sangie595 wrote: »

If there is a clear sickness absence policy, then yes, anyone can be dismissed for being off sick - the reason for the sickness or whether there are fit notes isn't relevant. Having a recognised disability MAY mean that he would get some allowances made - but it isn't compulsory that an employer must do it.

Yes.

Although mental illness such as depression can amount to a disability for employment law purposes it is far form automatic or clear cut. Generally it would have to be severe and have been going on for some considerable time. Also, the employer would need to have been made formally aware and reasonable adjustments requested. These could potentially include a more flexible application of the absence management policy and / or some changes to the work environment.

Reasonable adjustment don't go as far as many people fondly imagine (although some employers do far more than would be legally required). If, as is most likely, this is not a "disability" then the employer doesn't have to make any adjustments at all.

agrinnall

Yes they can dismiss, there are some basic guidelines here.

https://www.gov.uk/dismiss-staff/dismissals-due-to-illness

gabriel1980

he's worked there for around 6 months, although definitely over the probation period

sangie595

gabriel1980 wrote: »

he's worked there for around 6 months, although definitely over the probation period

In that case I wouldn't hold my breath. He has no right to claim unfair dismissal, and although he could claim discrimination, as suggested above, he would struggle to prove it, especially if he hadn't disclosed it.

I may be making unwarranted assumptions here, but I would have thought that debt recovery and having depression probably isn't a good mix. But in any case, he probably needs to be thinking about his future, and possible other employment. If there have been three warnings or so within six months, that would indicate a level of absence that is pretty high for only six months employment.

jobbingmusician

Just to clarify - probation periods are completely irrelevant in employment law. The only milestone that really matters is the 2nd anniversary, when you (at long last!) gain full employment rights and protection from unfair dismissal.