To think I will be dismissed for sickness record?

[nojob]

I started a new job last October with 3 month probation. I was told in January that my probation was to be extended for 2 months 'due to absence' as I'm not fully trained up yet and haven't been able to demonstrate I can meet the required standard. They said they are confident that I should meet the required standard by the end of February.

I have been off sick for 10 days in total (2 days in November, 2 days in December, 1 day in January all due to very bad periods and 5 days last week due to a heavy cold.). Can they decide not to pass my probation even if my performance is ok? They haven't said anything yet but I get the vibe that they are not very supportive of sickness. I missed some important training when I was off last week. Should I be worried?

Thanks for the advice re the periods everyone. One of the main issues is that I feel faint or actually faint due to very low iron levels. I have prescribed iron supplements but they make me feel very nauseous. So I'm faint, nauseous and in pain all at once.

You should be worried. Do you take meds for periods - my daughter had to from age 13 as she was taking 2 days off school a month until then which we thought unacceptable. I’ve been working for over 30 years and have never had 5 days off with the cold- have also had flu once and took just 2 days, id say you’re presenting As an unacceptable risk. Recommend you confront the issue head on and ask for an extension to prove the sick leave is an aberration.

So what are you doing about it @nojob?

Talk to your employer and ask what the deal is re the amount of days you’ve had off. Most organisations would by now have let you go. That’s a hell of a lot of sickness. You’ve had more sickness than me, proportionately, than when I had a massive accident and a skin graft!

I'd be looking for a new job before you get the sack if I were you.

OP, you need to go back to your GP, ask them for more help, and tell them that you are at risk of losing your job because of the problems you are having with your periods.
Let your employer know that so you can demonstrate that you are being proactive about it.
Years ago, I had horrendous periods due to endometriosis. I was able to take in a leaflet when 'called in to talk about my absence' and show what actions I was taking to reduce the impact on my job. That was enough to satisfy them that I was trying to improve the situation and they were more sympathetic.

I think this is down to personality and attitude. Life's copers v life's victims.

Copers find solutions and are proud they can manage in tough situations.

Life's victims are all of woe is me. I can't do anything about it.

I've had someone in my team like you suffering with endometriosis. Very frustrating as a manager. I tried to be sympathetic, but they just took more and more sick days, leaving early for appointments or coming in late. Our systems weren't able to cope with working from home, it wasn't me preventing it ( small private company.)

I have cut to the end, having ready 1/2 of the post. Soz.

I was amused at an early comment about being Public Sector, and them Not Tolerating this sort of thing.

In my coal face HCP team, frankly, there's rarely anyone over band 6 to report TO, and that person's grasp of the telephone convo is often rudimentary.

Sickness is so poorly recorded, LET ALONE managed, you could get away with that for years, with us.

I have had 16 days off in four months.

I have had a lumpectomy and four rounds of chemo.

You are taking the piss.

Get better iron tablets. Half the planet loses iron each month. You do not have to take the prescription tablets if they do not agree with you. Look for chelated iron on the tub in Holland and Barrett.

DH and I are thinking of TTC soon so that wouldn't work

I acceed to your superior knowledge of not working

I think as you have gone over 3 months u might have greater legal protection but check this out.

You wouldn't. The cut off point is two years.

OP, it does sound as if, in your last employment, you got too comfortable in your little routine of having a day off every month followed by a day working at home - with the result that it apparently didn't occur to you that you really needed to assume that you had to do your utmost to avoid taking that much time off in any other job.

Do you have endometriosis OP? If you haven’t already ask to see a Gynaecologist and say to your GP that is massively impacting your work. If you do then a) hopefully the consultant can actually help you and b) it may be treated with differently as a disability related period of sickness.

If there are roles in your sector where working from home is the norm it might be worth trying to move into one. That way, you may not need to take nearly so many sick days.

If you have been in a role for less than 2 years in the UK your employer can terminate your employment at any point without giving a reason with the exception of things like descrimination.
If I were you I would go to the GP and come up with a plan of action to help you manage your illness and meet with your boss and explain how you are concerned but this is the plan and do they think there is anything else you could do? Being open is the way to go especially if your work is good while you are there. They need to know they can rely on you and as it stands, they can’t at the moment but it is also a cost to a business to recruit and train a new start so you have it in your favour that you are part way there.

had a dreadful cold the week before last and was literally on my knees for 3 days at work, but there no way I would have considered calling in sick.

That's a problem with our work culture. Work before anything, even jf you're "on your knees"

had flu once and took just 2 days

So you just went back into work still ill to give it to other employees?

This is so obviously a wind up. There is no way this post is legit, its so sketchy on the medical details plus nobody in their right mins would think like this. Its obvious that this is being written from an employers point of view to see what the general feedback from the public is, they obv have a troublesome employee

I cringe at the posts with “I went to work despite having a miscarriage due to.cancer stage 4 chemo and my family dying of pestilence.”
Despite that I find your attendance record appalling - you can’t take days off every month for your period, followed by a week off for cold etc. And if you now plan on TTC, wow, can’t see that going down well.

I have prescribed iron supplements but they make me feel very nauseous. So I'm faint, nauseous and in pain all at once.

Find a different way of getting iron into you - food state iron tablets or Floradix. Honestly - you can't keep taking the piss out of your employer like this

One of the main issues is that I feel faint or actually faint due to very low iron levels

your iron is so low that you faint yet you want to TTC. I think you need to give your head a wobble.

I like the suggestions to see the GP...more time off work?! 🤦🏼‍♀️

Where I work (private sector), you would have failed your probation by now. If you were in my team and I hadn't brought this up with you after the first couple of absences, HR would have been on my back (and my manager).

Off sick every month is unacceptable and it would trigger a Capability Review where I work and they usually mean you are shown the door.

i’ m all for staying at home when you are sick, but a standard 2 days per month plus extra is too much. you need to get your periods sorted, that is not normal. go to the gp for that, not a cold.
and ttc when you are that sick is not a great idea - get your health sorted first, pregnancy and having kids is hard on your body

@Surfer25 if it goes on like that, she won’t be in work for much longer....

So if you get pregnant your absence will double. What with potential morning sickness and general feeling lousy....yeah I wouldn't want you as an employee. You strike me as lazy,what happens if your mum is sick or worse?