AIBU to consider legal action after dismissal for long-term sickness?

“Unlimited gimmes”? What a disgusting thing to say

It was my union who saved my job for 2 years (a 2 year final warning). Boss wanted to sack me, and the union came to the rescue.
I was sacked in the end, and that was also miss handled (I could not do overtime), but at the time I did not have the energy to fight it.
I really loved my job too.

To add it’s hugely unlikely a direct discrimination claim would succeed unless the employee could provide a comparator who had been off for months with no prospect of return but hadn’t been dismissed.

Isn’t Aug nine months ago?

Have you contacted union? They may offer legal help.

I am most definitely NOT mistaken. YOU on the other hand are 100% wrong in almost everything you have posted.

There is no defence for direct discrimination ie sacking someone because they are disabled. For that the employee would need to demonstrate less favourable treatment compared with a non disabled actual or hypothetical comparator.

However the other forms of disability discrimination ie indirect, discrimination arising from disability and failure to make reasonable adjustments most definitely can be justified as long as the action taken is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

Go educate yourself before making a fool of yourself further

OP, I know being dismissed is really distressing, but if Occ Health have said you are unfit to return to work, that would mean they don’t think there are any reasonable adjustments your employer can make, and it’s highly likely your employers will have taken legal advice. Acting on the advice of Occ Health is perfectly reasonable, and a GP note declaring you fit to work wouldn’t overturn that. Speak to your Union, but if you are worried about money I wouldn’t waste money on employment lawyers, your union will have access to legal advice they can take for you.

So

youve been off 7 months. OH say you’re unfit for work. You admit there’s no end in sight. What exactly do you think your employer has done wrong? Why should they keep you employed?

Tell us exactly why your boss thinks you are dangerous?

I worked with a lady who was off for months for cancer treatment.
Would you tell her that she should be thinking about her work collegues picking up the slack? No, because that is up to managment to sort, and no one off sick should be made to feel bad about being off.
But I am assuming that people off with MH should be treated different. I would be very happy to be corrected on that.

No, the sick person doesn't bear the burden of the employers problem. It’s just a cost of doing business

employing people comes with risk.

what adjustments can you make for someone threatening to harm colleagues?

You’re mistaken. There is no defence to discrimination.

think what you’re trying to say is this isn’t discrimination. That may be the case, we don’t know enough details to say if it is or not.

Erm, yes it is. You can't expect unlimited gimmes forever. 7+ months was generous!

Oh goodness I feel for you but we have a girl at work bi polar ocd anxiety you name it and while I desperately feel for her she is useless in the job and we are feeling like we are providing care in the community while she gets paid. Really hard for everyone involved but trying to put it across from the other side x

It is not illegal to sack someone with a disability

Yes you can actually as long as you can demonstrate that the dismissal would be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim

Not quite. They have to make reasonable adjustments not exhaust every avenue.

It’s about what is sustainable from a business perspective. Seven months is unsustainable from a business perspective when OH have deemed you unfit to return to work. It’s that simple. Of course appeal the OH assessment and check they have complied with the law etc.

Whilst it sounds horrible for you; you could also think about it from the perspective of the company and other employees who have been understaffed for 7 months

That is absolutely not a burden for the person off sick to bear.

Before you’re going to get anywhere with this you’re going to have to produce medical evidence which will rebut the OH. From what you’ve said here it sounds like a fair decision so you may well struggle.

I'm sorry, that must've been awful. Well done for surviving and getting through (and I don't mean that glibly as someone who's had poor MH myself at times). Not everyone's mental health problem can be dealt with like that though. The OP has been deemed unfit for work by OH so she's obviously still struggling significantly.

The thing is the OCD is irrelevant here. You are not capable of doing the work the employer needs you to do as a result of it. It could be any illness. It makes no odds. Try and see it from their POV. They have employed you in good faith and you haven't done a stroke in seven months. In this economy, they have to protect themselves and try and run at full strength. Unless you have really really good evidence of discrimination, don't even consider legal action because it will cost you a fortune and what bit of your mental health you are clinging on to.
Let it go and concentrate on healing all day every day and when you are well, start afresh.

And that is what everyone has been saying.

And on that note, I’m out. Can someone tag me if the OP ever responds to question about the OH comments on the time dedicated in the day on OCD?

I’m starting to feel like I understand why she was dismissed if she’s not able to provide basic information or answer a question.

You’ve been off since last summer, do other people carry your work when you are off, how does it impact the team, will your OCD be a factor when you return? If you’ve been paid all this time I would say your employer has been more than understanding. Just because you have a disability, it’s not a get out of jail free card, if they have followed procedures then you won’t have a leg to stand on.