Has my employer the right to discipline me for being genuinely ill?

Debbi (SOC)

Honestly, there is a girl in my office who has "medical problems" and gets doctors notes for everything PLUS she is blatantly lying about everything! Perhaps they have to check it out. Not saying you are lying though.

Bo P

you bet

DMsView

Most companies will have a standard period of days which, if you go over will require a disciplinary. It's just a chat to see how things are going.

I had one once. Got told I'd had an average of 1 day a week off since I joined the company. I hated the job I was doing but they promised me promotions so I stuck around. I asked them about the promotion at this meeting, they told me there we no vacancies so I pulled out an advert for that job from the mornings paper threw it at them and walked out. Not professional but definitely good for my mental status.

As for you, don't worry. They probably are concerned for your well-being and want to discuss how things are going.

chatsplas

YES. The disciplinary hearing is NOT discipline, but a hearing to determine whether discipline should be administered--almost a month out. Probably automatically triggered by being absent X number of days. That is an excessive number of days to be absent and creates a burden for your employer. However, having had two surgeries, assuming not elective, makes it more reasonable. You need to attend with your proofs and dates and a positive attitude. You tell them that it was a very hard year for you with the two surgeries, but with them behind you, you are confident that your health is greatly improved and your attendance will be much improved.

ajsnskool

Sorry but you'd have been fired 10 absences ago in my company where the max for 1 year is 15. Doctors excuses just mean you weren't "playing hooky," you were still absent Your employer has a business to run and needs employees who will be at work, regardless of your reasons for being absent. Don't mean to sound cold but honestly, you'd have been long gone in most companies. I do sincerely hope you come out of your depression and your health improves though. Good luck.

Peter B

You need to check your contract of employment. It will probably stipulate in that what the terms are..

rwa000

I know you won't want to hear this, but Dr.s notes mean nothing, the employer pays you not the Dr, notes only mean that you saw him, the ultimate decision is the employers

Judy

Unless you qualified for FMLA leave and submitted the proper paperwork for that, yes they can discipline you or file you for missing too much work no matter why you were off.

Lily B Talus

not really, but they'll get around it somehow...you'll probably find that if anybody needs to be laid off it'll be you.

kelfisher

A good employer has duty to work with you when you are ill. They should try to get you back into work in a position that is suitable for you at this time.

I would suggest that you attend you local citizens advice bureau before the meeting and if you are not happy with the outcome (i.e. you are disciplined) you should return there after the meeting with your employer.

kapn

Yep........you can and most likely will be fired.........sorry..........get to work every day.....on time.........or your job will belong to someone else........

Avondrow

No. They do have a right to investigate whether you are genuinely ill or not. I've been through that process myself. As I was diagnosed with Diabetes, I was cleared, but the process was frustrating and humiliating, as I was also made to feel as if I was dishonest. But if all your absences are certificated, there is no question of a disciplinary. HR may be reviewing your sick record, but unless they are specifically accusing you of fraudulent claims of being sick, it can not be a disciplinary. Are you in a union? Get a representative. If not, still check out the TUC website for advice.

tah_london

Most employers wouldn't employ someone who is ill. You have to be fit and attend work. Sickness costs the company, so they are better of without you.

I know this sounds hard, but it's a fact.

(If you had a company, would you employ someone who is sick - you will worried about you success of the business and try to employ someone who can attend the work and cause success for your business)

Jez

If it is recognised by a doctor you may have a claim under the Disibility discrimination Act. They should try to make reasonable adjustment where possible or offer you alternative employment which fits your illness (eg later working hours etc( I would speak to ACAS or a union rep if I were you and if you have a close friend at work or a colleague then ask them to come with you as you have a right to be accompanied.

Also, ensure that you have read the sickness policy, disability/equal ops policy and the disciplinary policies for your company to know why they are disciplining you and if this is in your contract.

Nelly35

A DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) claim springs to mind! An employer cannot discipline or sack you just for being (properly) ill (although they could stop paying you your salary, subject to your terms of employment). Your employer is not a doctor so cannot even suggest that you are playing hookey unless they appoint their own doctor to review you, and they (the second doctor) says you were feigning it. This would also call into question the actions of your doctor.

Before agreeing to the meeting, I would suggest getting in touch with your Union or 'a legal' friend to get some advice. I would not, if I could help it, step into that meeting without having some support (I know that you generally cannot have legal representation at these disciplinary meetings, but you can have a "friend or colleague" along for support).

Best of luck

rennickelizabe

not if you have sick lines from your doctor and to these people saying the company need you to be there have they ever had depression i know how you feel as i am off with it as well so i can sympathise if you have a union go and see them and see if they can help you good luck and if you need to talk send a message through answers

qpr26

Very good question Firstly, you say that your employer talks to you when you return to work regarding tour absence. These are actually called "Return to Work Interviews". Every good employer has these and there to safeguard the employer as well as you too and to decide on an action plan - who will replace you, can you work in another department until your better, how they can support you ect, ect.. I don't really understand why you will be attending a disciplinary though. Have you asked your employer exactly why they intend to hold the disciplinary? You say your absence has been certificated. Are you sure you have accounted for ALL your absence. Even if there is a single half day unaccounted for, they can discipline you. Especially if you have been long term sick. You cost them alot of money to keep on with little reward in return, so they may be fishing for any reason to dismiss you. I would seek advice from your union or staff association representative. If you are not a member consult to citizens advice bureax.

no other nickname

Of course! He wants his workers to work, not be home so much because you're always sick. If you can hold a job without missing so many days, get another one. If this happens frequently, I would find a job that doesn't require you to be around as much as this one. There are other people who need that job and would not have missed any days of work. Give those people the chance to have the job and find something that suits you better.

CAR

when you are called in to the disciplinary hearing i would have to hand
letters from my doctors saying what was wrong with me and why i was
out on all the occassions , you see the problem is really you have been out 25.5 days which is very excessive in fairness when a company is trying to get work done, and if you suffer from depression maybe a part time role in the company might suit you better , also read through your contract in detail and make sure you have followed eveverything on it to a tee so you can stand up for yourself , you can't be fired though and it would be unfair dismissal when you supplied all the documentation to them , also ring your local citizens advive bureau and they will only be to happy to help you

msoexpert

The issue really centers on whether or not your illness, depression in this case, is effecting your ability to do the job. Employers cannot discriminate against those with disabilities who are qualified to handle the job. This would violate the ADA--Americans with Disabilities Act.

So merely suffering from depression is not grounds for being discriminated against in terms of hiring and disciplining. But if it hinders your ability to perform the requirements of the job, then that's another story. Reasonable accommodation is all an employer needs to do.

Missing 25 days in a single year is a lot of time off. And you cannot blame an employer for not being happy about this. So it's understandable that they're not happy. Yes, you had other things going on--surgeries, but is 25 days out "reasonable?" That's the big question.

HR knows the laws very well and the huge consequences of violating anything to do with the ADA. So they tend to be very conservative in dealing with these issues to prevent potential lawsuits and the EEOC getting involved.

Right now, HR probably doesn't know the extent of how this will be effecting your ability to perform the job requirements. If it was a "one-time" thing that is now over, then I think HR will not have a problem. But if it's an on-going issue that will negatively impact your ability to perform the job, then the question is how to reasonably accommodate. If they cannot, then they would be right to discipline or even let you go.

So I don't think they're making you feel dishonest. Instead, I think they're wondering the extent to which your ability to perform the job will be impacted. At this stage, they know you've missed a lot of work, suffer from depression, and have had 2 surgeries all within a single year! Now it's up to you to prove to them you can still perform the job and that this is not a long-term problem. And having a doctor's note saying you can still function on the job will definitely help your case.

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