Cancer Checkups - Time Off Work - Pay Rise Denied

Savvy_Sue

I'd encourage him to join a union and get their advice.

Undervalued

2stixoftwixes said:

LunaLater said:

2stixoftwixes said:

My friend's son (20 years old) works for a national pub chain
A few years ago he was diagnosed with cancer and although given the all-clear, he has to have regular checkups which means time off work.

The chain has just raised the hourly wage rates, but the son never received the increase due to the amount of time off he has taken due to the checkups and sickness in the last year.

I believe this is illegal and a clear case of discrimination, as I know that cancer is also classed as a disability.
Is there anyone who can confirm this

Has he been calling in sick for appointments?

I don't know, I guess more details are needed.
He only works part time as he is in uni, but he's pretty disappointed that every one else (even the same age) is earning £1.50 an hour more than he is now for the same job

Indeed.

However, there is no right to a pay rise just because others have had one.  He would need to show that he is being discriminated against because of his disability.

Some additional time off for medical appointments in a common "reasonable adjustment" for a disabled employee but like all these things it is not automatic in every case. It comes down to what is appropriate and reasonable.

It is worth noting that for a non disabled employee there is no automatic right to time off for routine medical appointments. The employer can insist that annual leave is taken if they cannot be booked outside of working hours. 

A starting point would be to establish what this firm's normal policy is for routine medical appointments for a non disabled employee. A reasonable adjustment would be to allow some flexibility but it is not a blank cheque.

TELLIT01

How often are the checkups? and how much other time has he had off through sickness?  Has he offered to switch shifts with other staff members in order to have the appointments on non-working days?

elsien

I’m going to echo what other people have said. I wouldn’t be using sick leave for checkups. I would be trying to arrange my shifts round them if possible. Or making the time back up. 

And if he’s had the all clear from his cancer and it’s no longer impacting on him then what is the sickness he’s phoning in for? 

eamon

According to the OP the young man is 20yo. Hospitality is low pay work and usually around national minimum wage levels. There are sizeable differences depending on your age. (April 2023 figures)

 e.g £7.49 @ 20yo to £10.18 @ 21yo, a £2.69 difference.

This is all legal.