How could getting signed off due to ill mental health impact a job search or buying a house?

Crasher

Hi there -

I was recently referred to an occupational health psychiatrist due to really struggling at work (I'm in the final stages of an improvement plan and I don't think it's going brilliantly) who has told me she would recommend that I get signed off. I'd asked my counselor if she would recommend this recently, and she said no because she thinks I'm good at avoiding things when I'm stressed out by them and it would be better for me just to power through, find a new role, and leave on my own terms. It's not been a great fit for me.

I'd committed myself to job hunting and just finding myself a role I'd enjoy more but now this recommendation has come through and I'm not really sure what to do or how this works.

So my questions are:

How does being signed off impact a job search? Can I get in trouble / does it look bad to a new role if I'm applying and interviewing while being signed off? Ideally I'd like to just get out of my current role.

My partner and I are looking to buy a house soon. Can being signed off have an impact on this?

What am I supposed to... do all day? Has anyone had any experience with this? And did it help?

Blatchford

Some employers do ask for sickness records and take that into account when recruiting. So yes, being signed off might impact on job hunting.

You are being performance managed? Which means that you are at real risk of losing your employment. You are required to notify any potential mender of that fact. They don't care about your sickness record and won't ask about that, but they will, even if it's in the small print, have something about any known risk to your employment.

Personally I agree with the counsellor. I can't see how being signed off improves your situation any at all, and it won't stop you being dismissed. So I'd personally recommend finding a new job and leaving on your own terms.

Crasher

Thanks for that. It does sound like the best thing to do would be just to get out and into a new role.

If it comes down to it, is it better for me to get dismissed, or resign on my own terms? My partner and I have a bit of money saved and he is fine if I decide to resign (he's seen the hours I work and the stress I'm under, and just wants me to be happy). I'm getting a decent amount of interest around my job applications - I have 2 interviews coming up, so hopefully even if I do resign before an offer, I wouldn't be out of work for too long.

If I am dismissed, I worry that it would come up in reference checks and have an impact on future employment prospects.

[Deleted User]

You would be better off resigning.

Dismissal won't look good on your reference, as a reason for having left your previous role.

Blatchford

Crasher wrote: »

Thanks for that. It does sound like the best thing to do would be just to get out and into a new role.

If it comes down to it, is it better for me to get dismissed, or resign on my own terms? My partner and I have a bit of money saved and he is fine if I decide to resign (he's seen the hours I work and the stress I'm under, and just wants me to be happy). I'm getting a decent amount of interest around my job applications - I have 2 interviews coming up, so hopefully even if I do resign before an offer, I wouldn't be out of work for too long.

If I am dismissed, I worry that it would come up in reference checks and have an impact on future employment prospects.

You'd be best discussing this with the employer. Nobody here can tell you. Your current employer is entitled to tell the truth on any reference. So they may say that you resigned because you were in the final stages of performance management. If they are willing to agree to a neutral reference, or if they don't give details, then resigning is probably best. I'd suggest then telling the truth to potential employers - you were not a good fit, you weren't happy, you decided it was best to resign and put both sides of this out of their misery. Then you need to explain what you have learned about yourself and your career aspirations - turn a mistake into a positive. If you don't, you risk tripping up over a lie; and any decent employer is going to accept that everyone can make a mistake, but professionalism and maturity is leaving from it. Puts you in a much better light.

Any minute now somebody will post that the vast majority of employers don't mention anything other that starting and leaving dates, so don't tell the truth as you won't get caught. There is no evidence that the vast majority of employers do any such thing (there's no evidence either way,), but there's evidence that people get caught out in lies. Lying at recruitment is a fair reason to dismiss at any time, two years service or not. Approach this as a mature adult, and some employers won't be interested, but they aren't the kind you want to work for anyway!

TELLIT01

If you don't want/need to claim income related benefits it may be better to resign, although even that does seem to go against the advice from your counsellor to face up to issues rather than avoiding them. By resigning you are again avoiding facing up to problems.
Not being employed will impact on a mortgage application as your joint incomes will be lower.

Blatchford

TELLIT01 wrote: »

If you don't want/need to claim income related benefits it may be better to resign, although even that does seem to go against the advice from your counsellor to face up to issues rather than avoiding them. By resigning you are again avoiding facing up to problems.
Not being employed will impact on a mortgage application as your joint incomes will be lower.

I don't disagree, and that makes sense, but... I might want to think all that through (in the posters position). You may be entirely right, and running away from problems might be the wrong thing to do, and maybe even part of an avoidance issue that is deep seated. But equally, and based on personal experience, many years ago my doctor prescribed me antidepressants. It was a good medical call. I was definitely depressed. I sat and stared at them for four hours. Then I flushed them. Because I had some very good reasons to be depressed but no good reasons to take tablets to dull that. I decided to fight instead. I'm not saying that is what anyone else should do or ought to do. It was spot on right for me.

What we don't know is whether the counselor is right here or not - because a psychiatrist has said the opposite. Even if we had all the details, we can't second guess what's right for the poster. I'm relatively confident in saying that this is serious - OH rarely involves psychiatry referrals. I think the poster really has to consider both views and decide for themselves what is right for them.

Savvy_Sue

As for what you do all day, if you're claiming benefits for unemployment, you're expected to spend at least 35 hours per week job hunting. And unless you can afford to buy the kind of property you want on your partner's salary then that's precisely what you need to do!

Crasher

Thanks for all your comments and thoughts so far. I think OH Psychiatrist is thinking short term - I'm not in a fantastic state overall and not functioning well at work. It's Sunday night and I'm already short of breath and teary eyed thinking about the week ahead. There's a bit of me that wishes I could come down with some illness or get moderately injured somehow so I could just indisputably be signed off. I wouldn't bring it on myself, but I would be relieved. My counselor is thinking more long term as I've been seeing her for a while.

And yet, there's work I could have been doing to get caught up for tomorrow and I haven't touched it yet. (I have, however, been applying for jobs and prepping for my interviews so it's not been a waste of a weekend).

I've just had a look on my work's website and it looks like they only provide basic references - dates, main duties, job title, reason for leaving. So I think jumping before I'm pushed might be the way forward if it comes to that.

My partner and I are in our flat until at least April (from then it's a 2 month notice period) and we can cope with me being off a few weeks job hunting. It wouldn't be ideal, but neither is this.

And yes, if I was off, I'd be job hunting like crazy. I more mean, if I'm signed off with stress....I don't quite understand how to use that time to heal. But I think that's likely a question for my counselor. I don't think I'd be claiming benefits. I did an online checker and I have too much in savings / my partner makes too much money.

I hardly get any work done anymore. I just worry about doing it wrong, and if I ask for clarification my manager tells me that I should run with it and at my level I should just "get it". If he doesn't like what I've done after, he tells me all the things I should have done. I know I'm not doing the best job, but I'm trying to be and I want to be....

Dox

vegasvisitor wrote: »

They should only ask for sickness records after making a job offer, and should not withdraw an offer of employment due to sickness records. I know this may not always happen, but that's the law. Think it's Equality law of some sort.

https://knowhow.ncvo.org.uk/how-to/how-to-avoid-illegal-or-innapropriate-interview-questions

The link you've given is to 'community-made content'. Offers of employment most certainly can be withdrawn on the grounds of a poor sickness record. See https://beta.acas.org.uk/if-your-job-offer-is-withdrawn

Blatchford

vegasvisitor wrote: »

They should only ask for sickness records after making a job offer, and should not withdraw an offer of employment due to sickness records. I know this may not always happen, but that's the law. Think it's Equality law of some sort.

https://knowhow.ncvo.org.uk/how-to/how-to-avoid-illegal-or-innapropriate-interview-questions

Entirely wrong. It isn't the law. They can ask for sickness records at any time. They can only require them having made an offer. If they find the sickness absence unacceptable they can withdraw the offer. What they cannot do is withdraw an offer purely on the grounds of someone having a disability. Many disabled people have little or no sickness. The two things are not the same.