Dismissed after an accident at work

Hillwalker26

Hi all, I’m really hoping I could possibly get an answer to my question...
I started work for an employer and on my 4th day I had a heavy fall injuring my ribs and internal soft tissue damage I reported the accident and injury, was requested to visit either a minor injuries unit or an accident & emergency,
I went straight to the local minor injuries where I was examined & a medical report was done, I had 7 days off work then tried to go back on light duties however it soon became clear there was no light duties.
So I had more time off and supplied a Med certificate at the employers request then I was called into a “Meeting” where I was asked about the accident & was asked to remove my clothing from my upper body to show the said injury, however there were no visible signs as it was an internal injury, I was then asked to prove that I had an accident (no witnesses) which I couldn’t prove.
I was then dismissed on the grounds of being Duplicitous. 2weeks before Christmas last I am still suffering with extreme pain & have had an ultrasound & CT scan which clearly shows a fractured lower rib(floating rib) and severe internal bruising. Please help as I’m sure my human rights were violated making me feel humiliated & violated having to strip I also supplied them with a copy from the minor injuries & GP certificate however these were dismissed saying I was lying about the whole thing? ACAS say I have no rights whatsoever because I have to be employed 2 years! Please please help with some advice or guidance TIA

74jax

If you have explained it all to acas, and they have replied what they have I'm not sure what you expect from an open forum?

Undervalued

With less than two years service they don't need a reason to dismiss you. Nor do they have to give you a reason.

The employer is not obliged to have you back at work on light duties. They are quite entitled to say "do your full job or stay off sick until you can).

However, if the accident was your employers fault then you may have a claim against them for your injury and any losses you suffered as a result. Like any such claim you have a duty to minimise your losses as far as possible.

Les79

ACAS are pretty much right, they can pretty much sack you for any reason (unless it was discrimination based on a protected characteristic) within the first two years.




Aside from that, it sounds like you've got your paperwork in order (though I am slightly surprised that nobody saw you either fall or sprawled on the floor in pain with a fractured rib... so I appreciate their skepticism in that respect, but it isn't a get out clause for them on its own).


Coincidentally, did you IDENTIFY anything which would make the employer negligent here? Such as a wet floor with no sign up? Or equipment left out in a dangerous area? It would probably also need to be recorded in an accident book somewhere, but you potentially have a case to approach a (no win no fee) solicitor and see if you have any potential compensation claim here.


I'm not so sure on your "human rights" query because you quite simply could/should have refused to do it. More so if it was INTERNAL damage and you initially knew that there was no point doing it (due to no bruises etc).... The reports reveal all and showing even a bruise IS NOT PROOF OF WHERE THE ACCIDENT HAPPENED.

nicechap

Hillwalker26 wrote: »

Hi all, I’m really hoping I could possibly get an answer to my question...
I started work for an employer and on my 4th day I had a heavy fall injuring my ribs and internal soft tissue damage I reported the accident and injury, was requested to visit either a minor injuries unit or an accident & emergency,
I went straight to the local minor injuries where I was examined & a medical report was done, I had 7 days off work then tried to go back on light duties however it soon became clear there was no light duties.
So I had more time off and supplied a Med certificate at the employers request then I was called into a “Meeting” where I was asked about the accident & was asked to remove my clothing from my upper body to show the said injury, however there were no visible signs as it was an internal injury, I was then asked to prove that I had an accident (no witnesses) which I couldn’t prove.
I was then dismissed on the grounds of being Duplicitous. 2weeks before Christmas last I am still suffering with extreme pain & have had an ultrasound & CT scan which clearly shows a fractured lower rib(floating rib) and severe internal bruising. Please help as I’m sure my human rights were violated making me feel humiliated & violated having to strip I also supplied them with a copy from the minor injuries & GP certificate however these were dismissed saying I was lying about the whole thing? ACAS say I have no rights whatsoever because I have to be employed 2 years! Please please help with some advice or guidance TIA

You don’t say whose fault the unwitnessed fall was. Would your new employer have reason to believe it was a pre-existing injury or was sustained outside work from your social media posts?

What were the circumstances of the stripping off? Are you female & the bosses male? Or are you male & the bosses female and hot chocolate were playing in the background. In either case I’m assuming you consented.

Have you approached any injury at work lawyers to seek redress for stripping off & infringement of your human rights rather than ask strangers on the internet?

TELLIT01

As there were no witnesses to your accident it could be difficult to prove that it was the employer's fault. With only 4 days employment with the company they could simply say they felt you were too clumsy to do the job required. Unless you do want to discuss it with a specialist employment lawyer I think you would be best to put this behind you and move on.

theoretica

http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/reportable-incidents.htm


As you have a fractured rib and were unable to work in your normal job (not light duties) for more that seven days this incident was required to be reported to the HSE under riddor - irrespective of the cause of your fall.



You could ask your previous employers for a copy of this report, it might be slightly useful to keep with the medical documents if a future employer asks about this period.

Masomnia

This is an interesting one. If you brought a claim, or were thinking of bringing a claim, against your employer for health and safety issues and were dismissed as a result then you would potentially have an unfair dismissal claim. As it is I'm really not sure, so I'm interested to see what others say, but I certainly wouldn't rule it out.

Did they pay your notice (if applicable)?

jobbingmusician

However.....

Did you fracture your rib(s)? From the OP, it seems you did
Did you notify your employer of the incident? Including the fact that you had fractured a rib?
If so, did your employer report the incident under RIDDOR?

Is your accident reported in the employer's accident book? I would suggest you ask the employer for a copy of the accident report. Don't mention RIDDOR at this stage, but you might like to contact HSE yourself. If you HAVE identified a H & S issue and the company hasn't made a RIDDOR report, things could get quite entertaining....

Ha ha! I thought (and researched) for too long and my post crossed with the two above. I'd still be inclined to keep RIDDOR up my sleeve and go to the HSE direct.

dickydonkin

theoretica wrote: »

http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/reportable-incidents.htm

As you have a fractured rib and were unable to work in your normal job (not light duties) for more that seven days this incident was required to be reported to the HSE under riddor - irrespective of the cause of your fall.

The over seven day element of RIDDOR does not apply to fractures (other than fingers/toes/thumbs) and must be reported irrespective of the period of time off work (if any).

jobbingmusician wrote: »

However.....

Did you fracture your rib(s)? From the OP, it seems you did
Did you notify your employer of the incident? Including the fact that you had fractured a rib?
If so, did your employer report the incident under RIDDOR?

Is your accident reported in the employer's accident book? I would suggest you ask the employer for a copy of the accident report. Don't mention RIDDOR at this stage, but you might like to contact HSE yourself. If you HAVE identified a H & S issue and the company hasn't made a RIDDOR report, things could get quite entertaining....

Ha ha! I thought (and researched) for too long and my post crossed with the two above. I'd still be inclined to keep RIDDOR up my sleeve and go to the HSE direct.

You seem to have more questions than answers.:)

The OP stated that he reported the incident, but gave no clear indication as to what method this was achieved.

Hopefully the incident was recorded, however, judging by the strange behaviour of the employer, I suspect this has not been reported under RIDDOR nor do I expect the accident to have been investigated.

It seems strange for the employer to be asking about witnesses so long after the event when such details should have been submitted when the accident was logged - including evidence from first aiders - assuming that the workplace had a competent first aider on site!

As this injury is a 'specified injury' as opposed to an over seven day injury, this should have been reported within ten days of the incident occurring (over 7 day injury has a 15 day time scale for obvious reasons).

There isn't enough detail to offer more advice to the OP, but if the employer believes they are getting rid of a potential problem, dismissing the injured person can be a dangerous strategy.

IF the incident has been reported to the HSE contact centre, then the OP can check and ask for a copy of F2508 (a pain nowadays due to DPA).

I cannot see the logic of keeping 'RIDDOR up your sleeve' as the threshold for reporting it has seemingly long gone.

It would be more helpful if the OP could come back and provide more details of the accident.

theoretica

dickydonkin wrote: »

The over seven day element of RIDDOR does not apply to fractures (other than fingers/toes/thumbs) and must be reported irrespective of the period of time off work (if any).

Very true - my bad communication. I realised in the middle of a sentence that the employer might not have known about the fracture at the time as it was only mentioned with the later CT scan - but even if they didn't the 7 days means this needed reporting.