Boss keeps contacting me while on leave?

If you don’t want to make a fuss and tell them not to contact you, don’t even read the messages and send any calls to voicemail. If they ask when you’re back say you went away and had no signal.

Public sector there won't be one, unless you are an MP, perhaps.
You'd just work from home.
My friend's workplace burnt down (disgruntled member of the public who had been refused planning permission). Nothing was stored in the cloud; all records lost. The staff could do nothing for a few weeks, then they all worked from home for ages. Total nightmare. But no need for the boss to call any of them who were on leave!

If Im contacted by work on hols I don’t answer. I listen for a voice mail and then (unless it’s v urgent or a reall quickie) generally text to say Im out and about with the kids all day, no wifi and rubbish reception so can’t help today. Can it wait until xxx - most of the time they’ll apologise and deal with it themselves. ,

I wouldn't even contact him. I would contact HR direct. Question the comments made by him about them being "on his back". I would ask HR to contact him and ask why he is contacting you while you are off. You work in the public sector, so you have a lot of rights and should receive support from HR on this.

I’d send a message back saying for everyday you’ve contacted me will be an extra day I take off for annual leave. Contact HR as your leave is just that, leave from WORK. Furthermore turn your phone off and have an automated reply message from your own email stating you’ll reply to any emails upon your return.

It’s not his job to review yours or anyone else’s reasonable adjustments unilaterally.

Reasonable adjustments should be agreed between the workplace and yourself with independent backup from occupational therapists or other professionals as required. Both parties should regularly review the adjustments to ensure they are working effectively - eg if you have a back problem your standing desk hasn’t developed a mechanical problem, the interpreters for a deaf person are delivering well and keeping them up to date, are you using outdated screenreading software and need something new, and so on.

It’s not for him to review and decide that a person is or isn’t in the right job based on their disability and the adjustments needed. That’s not the purpose of reviewing adjustments and he doesn’t have sole power of yea or nay, the onus is corporate.

I get this. I am disabled. I am part of my work’s disability network. I know how hard it is to manage and upskill and advocate for yourself, both on my own account and hearing colleagues’ stories. I have a lifetime’s experience.

You sound quite intimidated and already afraid of rocking the boat even without the latest incidents. You absolutely should escalate to HR as he’s the problem, not you. I get this - I see it often enough among disabled colleagues who absolutely don’t want to rock the boat but then things escalate. Among other things, there’s the concern over getting another job - not so easy for us. So I understand. BUT -

Things won’t get better if you try to manage it yourself on the quiet without drawing attention. It needn’t be a grievance but you could document it in an informal but confidential conversation - but it sounds as if he’s already starting to manage you out by treating you unfairly. That does need escalating and you do need to advocate for yourself.

Or your boss will - and is - taking advantage of your disability work ethic to pile more and more on you until you collapse with the stress of managing your work and your disability. Then you’re managed out.

It’s an uncomfortable and confronting truth I’m afraid and I’m encouraging you with my lived experience as a disabled person and as an activist and advocate for others - please do escalate. His behaviour is unfair and breaks the law and you aren’t playing dirty or telling tales by raising a concern with HR - on a confidential basis if necessary.

Please do feel empowered to raise matters with ACAS and talk them over. That doesn’t mean a grievance is started if that’s your concern - you can just ask them for advice. It’s good, free and confidential advice which will leave you clearer about your legal rights. Ask them about use of personal phones, your legal right to time off, and your right to be treated fairly at work as a woman and a disabled employee. That might help you navigate going forward.

The legal basis for reviewing reasonable adjustments is to ensure they are effective. If he is doing this to intimidate he is guilty of bullying in the workplace and, potentially, in breach of the Equality Act. His comment about people working in the right place is prejudicial. Add in his contacting you whilst on leave and putting pressure on you to do work whilst on leave and he could be in trouble. Go to HR and throw him under the bus. He sounds like a deeply unpleasant individual.

You need to establish the boundaries and make it absolutely clear you will not tolerate being contacted when you are on leave.

And I would also be booking any time that you did spend working while you were on leave as actual working time to get your leave entitlement back.

I understand why you called back yesterday but once you knew the issue you should have said "I am on a/l and will deal with this on my return". You should not have got dragged into explaining or sending through paperwork. I think you should send a text today, reminding them you are on leave. I would also say that calling your personal phone, at 8 am, is completely unreasonable (unless you are the PM or the Pope) and you will report any further instances to HR.

Well it's ruined your first two days of leave, it's not just the time it takes to ring back and email them. It is also all the time you have no doubt spent ruminating. Not to mention the early time of the call.

Yeah I’d just ignore til I was back at work.

8 am isn’t in standard working hours even if you weren’t on leave, albeit it’s part of some people’s flexible working arrangements to work then.

We need to stand firm against this push to make 8 am part of the working day! 9-5.30 is standard and 8 am is no more part of this tan 6.30 pm is.

So very wrong.

It will depend on company/employer policies - these are never the same across industries or employers.

Also, you state it will harm the OP - and you know this how?

Your view is prejudicial.

Thats the whole point of a grievance - to determine the outcome.

You have fuck all way of knowing that the OP would come to harm if the OP submits a grievance. You are projecting nothing but your (worthless) opinion - it is not "fact".

I’ve just seen your work phones are rubbish but that’s a false economy and personal phones should not be used for business. There’s GDPR etc and for your manager to use your personal phone for non-urgent business is harassment - as is roping in colleagues to further pile the pressure on you. I would also look into the mandatory GDPR training your organisation must have.

I’m public sector too BTW.

My manager has my number for emergencies such as the office burning down or a hack. That’s it. That’s all that’s needed. I don’t expect to hear from work unless something very serious has happened. We have rules - no personal phones except in that circumstance, no interaction with colleagues on social media, etc.

I was on sabbatical and we did keep in touch in a light-touch way once a month but that was to enable me to know of any changes or opportunities and the progress of a long-awaited system change while away - so I knew what to expect on my return - and have a bit of a chat. Half an hour once a month was fine.

Not sure re discrimination, but bullying can be rife, with departments run as kingdoms.

You have a disability and this is bullying and harassment.

I strongly recommend talking to ACAS - only when you’re back! enjoy your leave NOW - and getting clued up with your legal rights regarding the Working Time Regulations 1998 and the Equality Act 2010. They will probably recommend copying in your HR in communications with your manager.

I would ignore and when you are back brief HR and/or talk to your union rep to get them to attend and document your next 121 to ensure that (a) it won’t happen again and (b) you get your leave back. Also contact your organisation’s Disability Network if they have one, or ask to speak to a disability rep from the union or similar.

As you have a disability I would also look at unpacking your response thus far. When you have a disability you often work twice as hard to match your peers, because you’re having to use coping strategies, which are in and off themselves quite hard work.

I know, because I’ve been there.

This can go two ways: you become less assertive of your rights because you want to fit in and don’t want to rock the boat or draw attention to your disability for fear of bullying. And managers take advantage of it. I think what he has said to you - as you’ve documented upthread - is a threat that is bullying in itself. And taking advantage of your desire to fit in. You’re not being treated equally and fairly.

Or it can mean you mean you become assertive, set boundaries and point out as a disabled person you arguably need your legally entitled downtime even more to become fully refreshed, and to harass a disabled person while on leave - for minor matters no less - meets the criteria for bullying and specifically would be considered against your protected characteristics as set out in the Equality Act.

If he is indeed male and senior to you then invoke your second protected characteristic as well - sex as well as disability - and suddenly it looks a whole lot more serious.

Never mind the fact that you are not exempted from the Working Time Regulations 1998.

This lays the organisation wide open to a complaint and grievance process on two grounds. Pretty serious.

HR should rightly be horrified. And just stating your entitlement to a complaint on legal grounds to HR will no doubt concentrate minds.

I’ve done it - not quite in the same circumstances - but I pointed out disabled staff were disproportionately affected by a corporate decision. I consulted ACAS, quoted the law and won my case - ie a different decision was taken - without it ever going to grievance. My threat was deadly serious and they knew it. I have always been a diligent and compliant employee and I spoke up not only for myself but others affected with tons of evidence.

Use your work time for all of this. It’s your right. Enjoy your leave and talk to ACAS/HR/union when you’re back or you’ll be doing more work on your leave to make your case.

Log the times and dates so far then forget it till you’re back (which will be easier said than done as it’s going to hang over the rest of your leave, probably). Which you would be reasonable to point out to HR! Park the boss and the organisation for now and just enjoy yourself.

if it's a work phone, turn it off
if it's a personal phone, why the hell do they even have your number and just ignore it. if they really need you they'll leave a voicemail and you can choose to call them back at your own convenience.

Because the first stage in any grievance policy is to try and resolve things informally, and OP hasn't yet done that, so the grievance would be thrown out anyway.

Because to raise a grievance, you have to be clear what it is you want as an outcome. What is that and why can't it be achieved informally?

Because like it or not, such an action will harm OP far more than it harms her boss.

Of course it's not OK and needs to be resolved but a grievance is not the way to do it.

I voted YABU because I think it sets unrealistic expectations if you keep answering work calls while on holiday. Is this your personal mobile your boss and colleagues are calling/texting on? If so, and they call/message you again, send one message saying you are on leave and will not be responding to any work messages until you return. Then when you get back, get a cheap second hand phone and give that number to your work, so you can leave it at home next time you go on holiday.

Why is it terrible advice?

The OP absolutely has evidence and legitimate reasons to do a grievance.

Just because YOU dont agree doesnt make doing one wrong.

🙄

I would be requesting my leave is reimbursed for that day.

And change your username to something with a little more backbone than “wet lettuce”. Talk about shouting what you think of yourself.

Choose something that gives you strength when you see it.

Your boss expected you to work. On two consecutive days.

Work is not holiday. You had had those days marked as “holiday” and he changed them to “work”. Get those two days back.

If nothing else, HR ought to then be making enquiries about his procedures.