Can HR ask questions about my health ?

Undervalued

Suzycoll said:

Undervalued said:

Back on 29th April, in your previous thread I posted......

I don't think there is a great deal I can add to my earlier posts.

It all comes down to "reasonable adjustments". You consider these to be reasonable and the employer doesn't.

 If the situation is deadlocked then only an employment tribunal can decide. Even then, it cannot force the employer to make the adjustments but it can award you compensation if they refuse.

You need to seek legal advice. What are your union doing? They should be you first port of call as if they find you are seeking legal advice elsewhere they will most likely drop all support.

The above should be one quote, not four!


So what, if anything, has changed in the four months since then?

Also, to repeat a question I asked earlier today.....

Have you had any professional / expert advice that the adjustments you are requesting are likely to be considered reasonable if it came to an employment tribunal?

Have the firm given any indication that they consider them unreasonable and, if so, why?

And to add....

Are your union still involved and are the willing to back an employment tribunal if necessary?

last  4 mths - I returned to work and the RA was unsuitable for me, I was told to go home by a manager as I was unwell. I then rang in sick again (stress), theoretically there is no suitable environment for me ? 

No the firm has given no indication why they consider the suggested RA unreasonable 
Yes I am in touch with my union rep. He advised (re the lights) ,as the lighting system would not be able to be adjusted just for me this would be deemed as 'reasonable'. There was also another RA suggested by OH  which was home working . My employer said I cannot do this in my particular role. I have advised them I would be happy to swop to another job role at the same grade. They made a few enquiries about this but nothing came of it (for info -  one third of my colleague's currently wfh/hybrid). I have not spoken to rep re employment tribunal as I am still in employment at the moment ?

Sorry if I am misunderstanding but the sentence I have highlighted doesn't seem to me to make sense?

Surely if there are good reasons why this adjustment can't be made then it is NOT a reasonable adjustment?

As I have suggested, you need a proper legal opinion as to the likelihood of a tribunal considering that the firm is being unreasonable. Ultimately if they can't or won't do what you want / need, then your only option is to leave (or be dismissed on capability grounds) and seek compensation. A union will only back such a claim if their legal advice is that you have a better than evens chance of winning. 

General_Grant

Undervalued said:

Suzycoll said:

Undervalued said:

Back on 29th April, in your previous thread I posted......

I don't think there is a great deal I can add to my earlier posts.

It all comes down to "reasonable adjustments". You consider these to be reasonable and the employer doesn't.

 If the situation is deadlocked then only an employment tribunal can decide. Even then, it cannot force the employer to make the adjustments but it can award you compensation if they refuse.

You need to seek legal advice. What are your union doing? They should be you first port of call as if they find you are seeking legal advice elsewhere they will most likely drop all support.

The above should be one quote, not four!


So what, if anything, has changed in the four months since then?

Also, to repeat a question I asked earlier today.....

Have you had any professional / expert advice that the adjustments you are requesting are likely to be considered reasonable if it came to an employment tribunal?

Have the firm given any indication that they consider them unreasonable and, if so, why?

And to add....

Are your union still involved and are the willing to back an employment tribunal if necessary?

last  4 mths - I returned to work and the RA was unsuitable for me, I was told to go home by a manager as I was unwell. I then rang in sick again (stress), theoretically there is no suitable environment for me ? 

No the firm has given no indication why they consider the suggested RA unreasonable 
Yes I am in touch with my union rep. He advised (re the lights) ,as the lighting system would not be able to be adjusted just for me this would be deemed as 'reasonable'. There was also another RA suggested by OH  which was home working . My employer said I cannot do this in my particular role. I have advised them I would be happy to swop to another job role at the same grade. They made a few enquiries about this but nothing came of it (for info -  one third of my colleague's currently wfh/hybrid). I have not spoken to rep re employment tribunal as I am still in employment at the moment ?

Sorry if I am misunderstanding but the sentence I have highlighted doesn't seem to me to make sense?

Surely if there are good reasons why this adjustment can't be made then it is NOT a reasonable adjustment?

As I have suggested, you need a proper legal opinion as to the likelihood of a tribunal considering that the firm is being unreasonable. Ultimately if they can't or won't do what you want / need, then your only option is to leave (or be dismissed on capability grounds) and seek compensation. A union will only back such a claim if their legal advice is that you have a better than evens chance of winning. 

At face value I would think the sentence you highlighted is saying because the lights could not be adjusted just for the OP (ie  with others not being affected by the proposed adjustment) then it was reasonable for the employer not to implement the change.

Suzycoll

General_Grant said:

Undervalued said:

Suzycoll said:

Undervalued said:

Back on 29th April, in your previous thread I posted......

I don't think there is a great deal I can add to my earlier posts.

It all comes down to "reasonable adjustments". You consider these to be reasonable and the employer doesn't.

 If the situation is deadlocked then only an employment tribunal can decide. Even then, it cannot force the employer to make the adjustments but it can award you compensation if they refuse.

You need to seek legal advice. What are your union doing? They should be you first port of call as if they find you are seeking legal advice elsewhere they will most likely drop all support.

The above should be one quote, not four!


So what, if anything, has changed in the four months since then?

Also, to repeat a question I asked earlier today.....

Have you had any professional / expert advice that the adjustments you are requesting are likely to be considered reasonable if it came to an employment tribunal?

Have the firm given any indication that they consider them unreasonable and, if so, why?

And to add....

Are your union still involved and are the willing to back an employment tribunal if necessary?

last  4 mths - I returned to work and the RA was unsuitable for me, I was told to go home by a manager as I was unwell. I then rang in sick again (stress), theoretically there is no suitable environment for me ? 

No the firm has given no indication why they consider the suggested RA unreasonable 
Yes I am in touch with my union rep. He advised (re the lights) ,as the lighting system would not be able to be adjusted just for me this would be deemed as 'reasonable'. There was also another RA suggested by OH  which was home working . My employer said I cannot do this in my particular role. I have advised them I would be happy to swop to another job role at the same grade. They made a few enquiries about this but nothing came of it (for info -  one third of my colleague's currently wfh/hybrid). I have not spoken to rep re employment tribunal as I am still in employment at the moment ?

Sorry if I am misunderstanding but the sentence I have highlighted doesn't seem to me to make sense?

Surely if there are good reasons why this adjustment can't be made then it is NOT a reasonable adjustment?

As I have suggested, you need a proper legal opinion as to the likelihood of a tribunal considering that the firm is being unreasonable. Ultimately if they can't or won't do what you want / need, then your only option is to leave (or be dismissed on capability grounds) and seek compensation. A union will only back such a claim if their legal advice is that you have a better than evens chance of winning. 

At face value I would think the sentence you highlighted is saying because the lights could not be adjusted just for the OP (ie  with others not being affected by the proposed adjustment) then it was reasonable for the employer not to implement the change.

Hi Grant, yes you are correct - that is what was said - apology Undervalued  if misinterpreted 

Grumpy_chap

It is difficult to make detailed comment because of the vague details (which is reasonable as the OP may not wish to go into sharing medical details) but, as I understand it:

• There is an underlying medical condition or disability for which reasonable adjustments have been requested, but no current agreement on what these would be and whether they can be implemented.
• A later (and short-term) stress-related condition arising from the failure to resolve the reasonable adjustments.

It now seems as though the reasonable adjustments in the workplace relate to lighting. 
The employer is indicating that is not a reasonable adjustment because it would affect others also.  Whether that is a reasonable assessment depends on the detail of what the adjustment to the lighting would be.  A change to overall lux (brightness) level may be different to the lighting colour level being changed.
Can the OP make any adjustments that achieve the same effect without impacting others?  Possibly specific glasses or local VDU screen filters?
Can a local adjustment be made?  Local desk lamp, for example?

Obviously, without knowing the details, it is difficult to give more comprehensive answers but the above ideas are indicative of a possible train of thought that might work out satisfactorily.

It does seem worth the OP keeping positively engaged with the current employer to reach an amicable resolution.

TELLIT01

Regarding the light issue,  if it is purely to do with using a computer screen there are many shields and filters available to reduce glare and reflections.  However if the problem is with the type, brightness or other aspects of office lighting I can certainly understand that can't be modified for one person.

One place I worked tried removing one set of lights in an open office but it affected other people so had to be reinstated.