Trying to return to work, problems with employer

Atreides

Out of necessity, this a really long post. Sorry in advance for that!

EDIT: Just need to say that my issue isn't with them not accommodating. The issue is with the lack of communication, that I outline below. I am not looking for acommodation really, I am looking to return to work, but I have had NO response from the senior management who make the decision.

I'm trying to return to work after a period of sick leave, but my employer is making it quite difficult. I have outlined my case below, with a closing question at the end.


Summary
I injured my neck due to working conditions, and I have been off sick for 5 months now. The first 3 months I was on SSP, but I am on a phased return to work since early September (I think, I’ll have to fact-check).

The issue is that my employer have made the phased return very difficult to do, my main concern being that I have not heard from them at all for almost two weeks in spite of me making several attempts at contact.

The Context

I suffer from degenerative disc disease (10 years and counting!), which usually leaves me off sick for less than a week a year in any job that I have done. I made this employer aware of the condition during my interview, and I have always been open about my issues during my employment. However, this turns out not to be entirely why I was off sick, as it was a neck injury.

The job typically involves support work for male adults, and is a very active job. Activity is good for my back condition! However, the shifts are 13 hours long during days and 11 hours long during nights. We are perpetually short-staff, and I was clocking in around 225 hours a month (not through choice).

During the nights, we have to sit on the landing on the stairs. I had to do this for almost a year before I was provided a chair to accommodate my condition. In the couple of months leading up to my sick leave, I had to do the lion’s share of tasks on the shift as we had new starters. This included driving a manual transmission car for around 4 hours per day, which exacerbated problems that were already developing from other aspects of the job.

All of this resulted in a neck injury, which left me unable to work the aforementioned period.

The Present

So, initially I was off completely on lots of lovely painkillers as I couldn’t do anything due to my neck. Over time the pain decreased to the point where I felt able to work with reasonable adjustments. The doctor suggested 3-4 hours per day, with the proviso that I cannot do certain tasks.

At this point, my employers were helpful and gave me some administrative tasks to do that didn’t involve any support or care of the service users. Due to my pain medication at the time, and the unpredictability of my condition then, I didn’t feel safe to do the support work (there is a forensic risk component to the job).

However, they were unwilling to alter the work environment to do the administrative tasks due to the costs involved in a desk and a chair. This meant that I had to work at a dining room table on a dining room chair, using a Google Chrome – none of which was helpful for my condition. As they were unwilling to adjust things in the work place, they were then willing to allow me to work from home. This was for 3 hours per day.

This is when things get a little weird. I started having tasks taken from me and given to someone else, without any knowledge of it occurring. The communication was exceedingly poor, and I received very little response to my emails. When I did get a response, it was often days late. This meant that I was working on tasks that were either already completed or currently underway. In addition, I don’t receive any feedback on the work that I submit. It just goes into the aether, so I have no perspective on my performance or if the work I have been doing is even useful to them.

At this point, I decided that I should perhaps look for another job. These issues are reflective of bad working practices at the organisation for the entire time I’ve been there, so I figured that I might as well move on. I decided to inform my employer out of respect for them and the work that they do for the service users, so that they don’t include me in future planning.

So for the last couple of months I’ve been looking for work. I have recently also been able to work standard full-time hours (up to 8 hours per day, 5 days). This still comes under the phased return to work, due to the shift patterns at this organisation. Although there a handful of tasks I can’t do (like drive a manual transmission car), I have informed them that I can return to support work. At least until I get a new job anyway…

Unfortunately it has been almost two weeks, and I have not heard back from my employer. I have attempted to contact them 3 times. My immediate supervisor informed me that she is on annual leave and won’t be back until around the 14th November. However, my supervisor has very little say or control in my work patterns. Until I hear back from the company directors, I am stuck working 3 hours a day from home and I’m losing money.


My question

Do any of you have advice on what I should do here? I feel like that what they are doing is quite illegal, by ignoring my request to return to work and not accommodating my health condition. I also feel like they are passive-aggressively pushing me out of the organisation, and is a pretty low tactic to use.

Any help would be massively appreciated!

DomRavioli

They don't have to accommodate. What they class as reasonable adjustments goes - you cannot force them to adjust.

Atreides

That's not my question. My question is asking what to do about my employer not responding to me at all. I have had no communication from them.

sangie595

Sorry but I am waiting for a taxi to take me to hospital!

But others will need to know. How long have you worked there? And I'm not clear about your return to "normal" work - support work. Have you done some? Or not? And are you on a zero hours contract or a contract of employment. I'll try to pop in later but can't guarantee it. I'm having hip replaced this afternoon!

YouAsked

Atreides wrote: »

Out of necessity, this a really long post. Sorry in advance for that!


I'm trying to return to work after a period of sick leave, but my employer is making it quite difficult. I have outlined my case below, with a closing question at the end.


Summary
I injured my neck due to working conditions, and I have been off sick for 5 months now. The first 3 months I was on SSP, but I am on a phased return to work since early September (I think, I’ll have to fact-check).

The issue is that my employer have made the phased return very difficult to do, my main concern being that I have not heard from them at all for almost two weeks in spite of me making several attempts at contact.

The Context

I suffer from degenerative disc disease (10 years and counting!),You have my sympathy - I had surgery a few years ago and I know how much pain you'll be in. which usually leaves me off sick for less than a week a year in any job that I have done. I made this employer aware of the condition during my interview, and I have always been open about my issues during my employment. However, this turns out not to be entirely why I was off sick, as it was a neck injury.

The job typically involves support work for male adults, and is a very active job. Activity is good for my back condition! However, the shifts are 13 hours long during days and 11 hours long during nights. We are perpetually short-staff, and I was clocking in around 225 hours a month (not through choice).

During the nights, we have to sit on the landing on the stairs. I had to do this for almost a year before I was provided a chair to accommodate my condition so they made a reasoanble adjustment. In the couple of months leading up to my sick leave, I had to do the lion’s share of tasks on the shift as we had new starters. This included driving a manual transmission car for around 4 hours per day, which exacerbated problems that were already developing from other aspects of the job.

All of this resulted in a neck injury, which left me unable to work the aforementioned period.

The Present

So, initially I was off completely on lots of lovely painkillers as I couldn’t do anything due to my neck. Over time the pain decreased to the point where I felt able to work with reasonable adjustments Caution here: what YOU think is reasonable, may not be reasonable for the employer. Anyway.... The doctor suggested 3-4 hours per day, with the proviso that I cannot do certain tasks.

At this point, my employers were helpful and gave me some administrative tasks to do that didn’t involve any support or care of the service users Good. Due to my pain medication at the time, and the unpredictability of my condition then, I didn’t feel safe to do the support work (there is a forensic risk component to the job).

However, they were unwilling to alter the work environment to do the administrative tasks due to the costs involved in a desk and a chair again, the costs may have been deemed "Unreasonable" - which isn't necessarily bad form on their part. This meant that I had to work at a dining room table on a dining room chair, using a Google Chrome – none of which was helpful for my condition. As they were unwilling to adjust things in the work place, they were then willing to allow me to work from home OK, so again they were prepared to accommodate. This was for 3 hours per day.

This is when things get a little weird. I started having tasks taken from me and given to someone else, without any knowledge of it occurring. The communication was exceedingly poor, and I received very little response to my emails. When I did get a response, it was often days late. This meant that I was working on tasks that were either already completed or currently underway. In addition, I don’t receive any feedback on the work that I submit. It just goes into the aether, so I have no perspective on my performance or if the work I have been doing is even useful to them.

At this point, I decided that I should perhaps look for another job. These issues are reflective of bad working practices at the organisation for the entire time I’ve been there, so I figured that I might as well move on. I decided to inform my employer out of respect for them and the work that they do for the service users, so that they don’t include me in future planning you might have informed them of your intention to leave with the best of intentions, but it may not have been interpreted that way .

So for the last couple of months I’ve been looking for work. I have recently also been able to work standard full-time hours (up to 8 hours per day, 5 days). This still comes under the phased return to work, due to the shift patterns at this organisation. Although there a handful of tasks I can’t do (like drive a manual transmission car), I have informed them that I can return to support work. At least until I get a new job anyway…

Unfortunately it has been almost two weeks, and I have not heard back from my employer. I have attempted to contact them 3 times. My immediate supervisor informed me that she is on annual leave and won’t be back until around the 14th November. However, my supervisor has very little say or control in my work patterns. Until I hear back from the company directors, I am stuck working 3 hours a day from home and I’m losing money.


My question

Do any of you have advice on what I should do here? I feel like that what they are doing is quite illegal, by ignoring my request to return to work what does your contract say? Zero hours contracts are different and not accommodating my health condition as mentioned they have to consider reasonable adjustments, but your version of reasonable and theirs may differ - so long as they can justify their version, then that isn't illegal. I also feel like they are passive-aggressively pushing me out of the organisation you've already told them you're leaving!, and is a pretty low tactic to use.

Any help would be massively appreciated!

I appreciate I don't know context, but from what you have posted, I can see a number of areas where they have tried to meet your needs. You have said that isn't enough and you'll be leaving - as is your right. The employer doesn't have to meet everything which is requested -if it's unreasonable form an operational point of view then they are within their rights to say they can't meet particular requests. They don't have to create a role for you - and by your own account some of the admin tasks you worked on had already been completed so clearly there are other people doing that role.

sangie595

Atreides wrote: »

That's not my question. My question is asking what to do about my employer not responding to me at all. I have had no communication from them.

And it isn't that simple an answer. This is a really complex situation

Atreides

Thanks for your reply. Good luck with your operation!

Answers to your queries:
I am not on a zero hours contract. They have to provide us with at least 40 hours per week, averaged over the month.
I have been with the organisation for 18 months. I was there for 14 months prior to my injury, doing the full extent of my job description and a lot of extra stuff outside of the job description.

The stage I am at now, is that I have contacted my employer to say that I can return on 8 hour shifts (they is precedent for them accommodating such a change), but that I can't drive or do heavy lifting. However, I can still do most of the job.

The issue is that they have not responded to me at all after nearly 2 weeks.

marliepanda

Are you able to return to the 11-13 hour shifts?

Is there a person you can support where the driving of a car won't be required? If you still can't drive, and your previous work required driving 4 hours a day, then in your own words you cannot do that.

You've also told them you're looking for another job, so they are pretty unlikely to start moving people around to accommodate you. Someone else is currently doing the support work you want to go back
To. Are they going to pull someone else off or reduce their hours to redeploy someone who is
A) looking to leave
unwilling to do some basics of the job

Atreides

I really appreciate people's responses, thank you so much. However, these aren't the things that I'm struggling with. I only meant the rest of the issues to provide some background/context to my current situation.

The overlying issue is this: I contacted my employer almost 2 weeks ago to return to work (obviously with some caveats). However, I have had NO response from them. This is a pervasive pattern of behaviour on their part, and I have no idea how to deal with it.

YouAsked

Atreides wrote: »

Thanks for your reply. Good luck with your operation!

Answers to your queries:
I am not on a zero hours contract. They have to provide us with at least 40 hours per week, averaged over the month.
I have been with the organisation for 18 months. I was there for 14 months prior to my injury, doing the full extent of my job description and a lot of extra stuff outside of the job description.

The stage I am at now, is that I have contacted my employer to say that I can return on 8 hour shifts (they is precedent for them accommodating such a change), but that I can't drive or do heavy lifting. However, I can still do most of the job.

The issue is that they have not responded to me at all after nearly 2 weeks.

OK, you've been there less than two years so have limited rights. You clearly have an ongoing disability, but from what you have written here, your employer has consistently tried to accommodate you.

It is entirely reasonable for them to consider what you have said - i.e. that you can return for 8hrs a day but only do certain things - and for them to say "well, actually, that's not the job we need doing". You've already said the business is stretched. For everything you CAN'T do, they need someone else who can - and could be essentially doubling up on hours for your 8hours?

But I think where you have told them you're leaving anyway, as marliepanda says below, they're not going to disrupt staff who are staying to accommodate you.

marliepanda

2 weeks isn't necessarily a long time. They need to consider their options.

You say you are 'losing money' do you have any time agreement on your phased return?