to think you can not be sacked when you

[zobey]

Have had a week off with a doctor's sick note. I have labrytites and am still not 100% but have gone back after a week off sick. I went off last Monday and returned this Tuesday. So it was only 4 working days due to the bank holiday. And work are saying that I'm gone on Friday unless I make a stupid amount of money for the company ie 700 when the target is normally 300

[diddlediddledumpling]

Sounds like it would be fairly straightforward unfair dismissal.
Have you been subject to disciplinary procedures prior to this?

[zobey]

Nope.

[SlowlorisIncognito]

You will probably get better advice from others but there are a few things you need to remember-

-Firstly, in the first two years of any job you can be dismissed at any time without the employer providing a real reason.
-Secondly, you can be dismissed for capability reasons if lots of sickness is impacting on your performance at work, and the company have followed their procedures.

Do you have a contract? What does it say about sickness? What is your notice period?

It doesn't sound great what they have said, and I suspect they are probably not doing things properly, but no it would not necessarily be illegal for them to sack you.

Are you in a union or you could contact acas for advice

[EduCated]

Is it a proper company or a very small place?

They sounds like nobs.

[Canus]

I've no idea really, what does your contract say?

I'm pretty sure that if you've been there less than two years, they can do anything they like as long as they can come up with a reasonable sounding excuse.

Is your sickness record generally problematic?

[daisybrown37]

Get them to confirm their request in writing - it sounds very unfair. How long have you worked there?

[MammaTJ]

How long have you worked there? I don't think legislation for this type of thing kicks in until you have been working for a company for quite some time.

[Sleepyhoglet]

You can't be sacked no reason where I work regardless of number of years service. They need to give warnings,verbal and then written. A week is not a ridiculously long time to be ill.

[EvansOvalPiesYumYum]

I would also agree with advice above.

How long have you worked for them?
How much sickness might you have taken?
Have you signed a contract, or is it a zero-hours contract (which I believe comes with some different rules)

Size of company shouldn't matter, so although I agree with EduCated that they may sound like knobs on the face of it, a small company is no less "proper" than a large one.

[zobey]

I've worked there for two months and this is the 1st absence I've had. It is a small company

[BitterAndOnlySlightlyTwisted]

One whole week of absence when you've only been there for two months is quite a lot.

They can let you go for any reason they like or no reason at all if you've been there for less than two years.

Being ill in a new job is very bad luck. But you might be better off out of there in the long run as they sound like absolute shits

[Pumpkinpositive]

Have you posted this in the Legal or Employment matters boards?

Do you have a contract?

My understanding is you can be sacked any time within the first two years for any reason outside of the protected characteristics (ie, age, gender, disability). But I am no lawyer.

Do you want to go on working there? What are they like otherwise as employers?

[maddy68]

Unfortunately after only two months they can do what they like

[DebbieOfMaddox]

After two months they can sack you because they don't like your shirt or because you chew the end of your pencils, effectively. So long as they are abiding by their own policies your are probably out of luck. It's worth reading through your contract and the employment handbook, but it doesn't look good for you.

[gordyslovesheep]

the 2 year rule only applies in some cases

www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1797

www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=4098

please contact your union or ACAS for advice

www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1461

[flowery]

Never ceases to amaze me that people think AIBU is a good place for advice on this type of thing.

In circumstances where you are going to be dismissed for sickness absence, you would only be able to consider a claim if the sickness was related to a disability.

You need two years to claim unfair dismissal, however there are a number of exceptions to this, including if you were being dismissed for a disability or other discriminatory reason.

[Sometimesbrunette]

I'm a Employment Law specialist.

If you have worked for the company for under 2 years you can't claim unfair dismissal, so they can sack you for anything really provided its nothing to do with TUPE, maternity, discrimination, whistleblowing etc.

Re the performance- unless you have a disability or protected characteristic preventing you from performing then yes, they can sack you for that.

Re the absence- they can sack you for one period of absence- but it depends what your absence was for. If its not a long term condition, maternity or related to a protected characteristic then unfortunately you don't really have anything.

What does your contract say re dismissals. Wrongful dismissal might be an option but often hard to prove/not worth it given the tribunal fees involved.

[Lj8893]

I think it's 12 weeks rather than 2 years.

Regardless, you have been there only 2 months and must still be in a probationary period where they can dismiss you for a reason as simple as "it's not working out"

[flowery]

What do you think is 12 weeks Lj8893?

Probationary periods are meaningless in terms of rights relating to dismissal, and normally only affect the required notice period. Length of service is the relevant factor.

[gordyslovesheep]

no two year limit for the following:

Dismissals are classed as 'automatically unfair', regardless of the reasonableness, if an employee is exercising specific rights to do with:

pregnancy: including all reasons relating to maternity

family reasons: including parental leave, paternity leave (birth and adoption), adoption leave or time off for dependants

representation: including acting as an employee representative
trade union membership grounds and union recognition

part-time and fixed-term employees

pay and working hours: including the Working Time Regulations, annual leave and the National Minimum Wage.

[Sometimesbrunette]

Yes probationary periods are not worth the paper they are written on.

Its not 12 weeks and from a company perspective I am glad it is not! From a personal perspective, i wish that it was.

The lowest it has been is 6 months and that was ages ago.

[NurseyWursey]

It won't even be worth pursing. Happened to my friend. She worked there for a few months, was signed off sick, then promptly sacked.

[EvansOvalPiesYumYum]

Am totally with Sometimesbrunette there! As an employee of large companies for many years, I always wanted and had that extra care and protection that larger companies can afford to and are able to give. For us now, as a small business with only one employee (and, I hasten to add, we are a very good employer and look after our one employee really very well indeed, and that has involved some health issues, within the first 3-month probationary period), some of the employment laws can cause some worries - they can often potentially put a small company out of business, if they were to be exploited.

It's useful to understand both sides of the coin, so to speak.

(Not suggesting for one minute that this applies to you, Zobey, and really hope you are able to sort out your issues satisfactorily. Very best of luck with your issue).

[EduCated]

Sorry, yes, all companies are proper companies, was just wondering if it was a large company with an actual HR department and proper union involvement, or a smaller company which is less likely to have this, as approach will depend on the people available to you, IYSWIM.

[EvansOvalPiesYumYum]

EduCated - yes, I see what you mean!