sacked while off sick from work, can they do this

kurjam

i found out today when my ex-employer finally emailed back, that when i sent in my last sick note january 8th they had already decided to give my job to someone else......they did say there could be another job in the next month doing something else they will let me know...
well i think not no way am i going back there.....going to sort out the unfair dismissal thing though !!

whatamess_2

This is going to come over as extremely harsh, but do you think you are capable of working?


You started in October and have been off sick more than you have worked, so they decide to dispense with your services.


They have made an offer of alternative employment the unfair dismissal will not be valid.

kurjam

whatamess wrote: »

This is going to come over as extremely harsh, but do you think you are capable of working?


You started in October and have been off sick more than you have worked, so they decide to dispense with your services.


They have made an offer of alternative employment the unfair dismissal will not be valid.

i can only have a job if they win a contract, they are bidding for. my doctor had already told me i should not be doing the work i was doing... i could not do the other work as it involves heavy lifting and standing for 8-9 hours a day something i can not do !!

kurjam

jasper27 wrote: »

Hi Kurjam
I'm sorry to hear about your situation...that sounds appalling!

This is something I'm worried about too.

I have a full time job, but also work 16hrs part time. I have been there just over 3 months but have had 2 days off. I am unwell at the moment but still working and have a doctors appointment this week, I am expecting to be told to have a few days off, if not more, but was told in confidence by a colleague that if I have anymore time off I will more than likely be sacked, as they 'need to cut down on hours' !!

Can they do this?

hope you dont mind me asking did the doctors tell you to have time off ??

TigerAngel11

31M wrote: »

This happened to me - I had taken too many "sick days" off and they sacked me.

Their excuse was "I cannot question your sickness but I can question your ability to attend work" which is ridiculous considering that the REASON I could not attend work was SOLELY BECAUSE of sickness. Its stupid isn't it!

I even checked the national average for absenteeism and I was below the UK average, but they still sacked me, it was a hell hole that place.

Sounds far too familiar! I worked at Tesco when my anxiety and depression got so bad that I had to take time off. I was given a verbal warning and told that if I had any more time off in the next 26 weeks, I'd be given a written warning and if I had any more time off after that, I'd be sacked. Obviously the stress of knowing that didn't help my mental illness and I quit when I was off sick, rather than return to a written warning and almost-certainly being sacked.

The managers themselves were mostly sympathetic, but as one of them said: "Tesco policy isn't about whether you're ill or not - it's about whether you're here or not".

So, in effect, I was being treated exactly the same as someone who was simply skiving without being ill - despite the fact that I provided sick notes from my doctor. Plus they could tell the extent of my illness when I had a panic attack whilst working on the checkout one day. Not that that mattered - they didn't care whether I was ill or off shopping!

dmg24

kurjam wrote: »

i can only have a job if they win a contract, they are bidding for. my doctor had already told me i should not be doing the work i was doing... i could not do the other work as it involves heavy lifting and standing for 8-9 hours a day something i can not do !!

I think this is the point that whatamess was making. If you are not capable of doing the work, what do you want the employer to do? Even when you are covered by the DDA, if you are not physically (or mentally) capable of doing the work, you can be dismissed for reason of incapacity. Yes, they should have followed procedure, but if the end result is the same, do you have anything to gain by taking it further?

kurjam

dmg24 wrote: »

I think this is the point that whatamess was making. If you are not capable of doing the work, what do you want the employer to do? Even when you are covered by the DDA, if you are not physically (or mentally) capable of doing the work, you can be dismissed for reason of incapacity. Yes, they should have followed procedure, but if the end result is the same, do you have anything to gain by taking it further?

taking it further, will stop them doing it someone else !!

dmg24

kurjam wrote: »

taking it further, will stop them doing it someone else !!

No, it won't. Sadly business does not work like that. Think about what you want for your future, not how this affects anybody else.

Be aware that before you can take them to Tribunal, you need to exhaust the companies grievance and/ or appeals process. In the great majority of cases, the company will take this opportunity to implement the dismissal process correctly, and the result for you will still be exactly the same, but more hassle and bad feeling.

Please take professional advice before taking further action against the company, 'unfair dismissal' is not as black and white as it may seem x

exil

In any case, the OP hasn't been in the job long enough to get protection against unfair dismissal.

dmg24

exil wrote: »

In any case, the OP hasn't been in the job long enough to get protection against unfair dismissal.

As his claim would be relating to disability discrimination, there is no minimum period of employment required.