To feel that I'm being treated unfairly at work?

[careerchangemaybe]

I'll try to keep a long story short and just the facts - trying to be as objective as possible.

Recently returned to work from 10 months maternity leave - been back 6 weeks now. I have struggled with my mental health whilst on maternity leave quite significantly - I spent some time admitted to a mother and baby unit when my baby was born, and have struggled on and off with anxiety and low mood throughout my maternity leave. I have been seen regularly for therapy by a perinatal mental health team, who are fabulous and have helped me lots.

Part of my struggles relate to separation from my baby, which sends my anxiety into overdrive. Hence the return to work has been extremely hard indeed, to put it mildly. But I've put a brave face on and tried to just get on with it thus far.

I submitted a request for flexible working / reduced hours to my manager. I wanted to go from FT (37 hours a week) to PT (33 hours a week). So in effect I'm asking for a reduction of just 4 hours per week. It's been declined. On the basis that it cannot be justified in the current for climate of severe staff shortages and the service being at crisis point as a result of Covid (I am in a large public sector organisation).

However, I know for a fact that some other colleagues work flexibly and have reduced hours, for their own reasons. So in effect I am being treated differently because of the work climate at the moment.

I honestly feel as though I will end up on long term sick if I have to continue to work FT hours. I am asking for a small bit of flexibility to enable me to keep working and to meet my health needs.

Am I being unreasonable? Any advice on how to proceed with this? I'm really lost. Thanks.

I am asking for a small bit of flexibility to enable me to keep working and to meet my health needs

You need to change your approach.

I don't think you will be successful appealing your flexible working request as they've declined with a justifiable business reason.

What you need to do is approach this on mental health grounds and they need for a reasonable adjustment to be made to enable you to continue to work. Get a doctors appointment and get a fit to wok note from them supporting your need for flexibility's and ask work to get you an occupational health appointment.

I think you will be far more likely to succeed this way and you will be protected legally.

Having a day off a week will cause more staffing issues than working 5 x shorter days, especially if that day is a Friday. Are you in a role that deals with the public so has to be fully staffed every day to deal with that?

In the public sector, if you accept less hours from a team member your budget is permanently reduced to reflect that and you can't ever get your full team budget back. That will give the manager issues if you ever leave and he can only recruit someone for 33 hours which might not be attractive to applicants. Granting less hours flexible working requests to several team members will see the staffing budget severely reduced for ever.
Best start looking around for a new job or ask for a 50/50 job share.

[quote careerchangemaybe]@DoubleChinWoes2

Is postnatal anxiety / depression covered under the equality act at all? [/quote]
Yes it is. You have mental ill health and are protected.

Because another employee has got reduced hours isn't relevant because it is what the service can manage at the time. The problem with dropping a few hours is that, unless you have a part timer wanting more hours, they can't be recruited to. We've had that in our team and had lost hours as a result. It's had a negative impact on service
If you go to half time then they can recruit

Going straight to full time is clearly too much for you and the reduction of 4 hours probably won’t help that much. Perhaps you could go down to 2-3 days and that would allow you to do a job share rather than struggling

I think you need to get some more info on why it was turned down and what you could do to get your request accepted.

One possibility is that it’s because your compressed hours mean that you are not working for a whole day every week, and it is this that is making it hard to cover/accept.

The FTE equivalent of what you have asked for is just over 0.9, but you’ll only be available to work 0.8 actual weekdays (admittedly for longer hours). How about you offer 0.8 instead?

I can’t comment on the fairness of this vs other people’s agreements in your wider team but can imagine how you feel.

I have found it emotionally stressful getting the right balance over the years (my kids are at school now) so I wish you good luck.

@MajorCarolDanvers

I am asking for a small bit of flexibility to enable me to keep working and to meet my health needs

You need to change your approach.

I don't think you will be successful appealing your flexible working request as they've declined with a justifiable business reason.

What you need to do is approach this on mental health grounds and they need for a reasonable adjustment to be made to enable you to continue to work. Get a doctors appointment and get a fit to wok note from them supporting your need for flexibility's and ask work to get you an occupational health appointment.

I think you will be far more likely to succeed this way and you will be protected legally.

Thank you for this advice, very helpful.

Unfortunately it’s down to business need. I had the same thing, completely denied any flexibility when there are others (exactly the same job as me in different offices) who were granted it. Is it down to compressed hours? That was a problem with mine, I don’t think they like it in principle. Could you suggest more part time hours? I also wasn’t offered any alternative and was given a different job as the man covering my mat leave has been given the role now!! I think all you can do is look for a new job that suits, that’s what I’m going to have to do unfortunately.

@sluj

Having a day off a week will cause more staffing issues than working 5 x shorter days, especially if that day is a Friday. Are you in a role that deals with the public so has to be fully staffed every day to deal with that? In the public sector, if you accept less hours from a team member your budget is permanently reduced to reflect that and you can't ever get your full team budget back. That will give the manager issues if you ever leave and he can only recruit someone for 33 hours which might not be attractive to applicants. Granting less hours flexible working requests to several team members will see the staffing budget severely reduced for ever. Best start looking around for a new job or ask for a 50/50 job share.

Our flexible working policy states that applicants can choose to have the hours they are losing protected against their role for 12 months in case they then want to go back FT, or a decision is made to make it permanent. I made it clear on my application I was looking for a temporary arrangement in the first instance as a trial for 12 months.

Would you have to pay back any maternity benefits if you left now? Worth checking before you decide to leave for another job.

Speak to occupational health.

@itrytomakemyway

Would you have to pay back any maternity benefits if you left now? Worth checking before you decide to leave for another job.

Only if I left before 3 months after returning from mat leave. My notice period is that length anyway.

I can't afford to drop more than those hours, hence why I haven't asked for 3 days a week etc, as pps are suggesting.

I'd do what @MajorCarolDanvers said and look for a manageable part time job.

Compressed hours are a nightmare for managers - the staff never seem to be quite as productive on a longer day as having them in 5 days. Creates multiple headaches with cover etc as someone missing a whole day every week. I've been burnt! I've also done it & it's exhausting!
Also agree re the budgets situation.

@Belfastbird

Compressed hours are a nightmare for managers - the staff never seem to be quite as productive on a longer day as having them in 5 days. Creates multiple headaches with cover etc as someone missing a whole day every week. I've been burnt! I've also done it & it's exhausting! Also agree re the budgets situation.

I would understand this argument if no one was permitted to work compressed hours, but loads of my colleagues do, and some have done for years. My manager even asked me if there was any way I could compress my FT hours across 4 days, but I can't because of the timings for picking up my baby from childcare. So he isn't opposed to compressed hours. He's opposed to losing 4 hours of my time a week.

@careerchangemaybe you may be just short of the 12 month period of time to be protected from disability discrimination. Is it possible to delay your return until you hit this threshold (using banked holiday?) and then you could seek reduced hours as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act.

Tbh you don’t sound fully well yet and on that basis alone you should at least seek occupational health support. I would be very surprised if an OH assessor agreed you should return to FT hours immediately. Good luck.

How much holiday do you have? Can you take a day a week holiday for a month and then see how you feel after that?

Have you asked them if there is a pattern they could accommodate?

Doesn't hurt to seek OH input as they may also identify other strategies or adjustments that could help you.

EA definition of disability is something lasting at least 12 months AND with a substantial adverse effect on daily activities. It's not about the diagnosis (unless cancer) but the effects of the condition.

Be aware however that even if you are covered by the EA, the requirement to make reasonable adjustments comes with basically the same get out clause as flexible working - business needs.

The word 'reasonable' is in the context of whether it would be reasonable for a particular employer to accommodate - not too expensive, not too disruptive, doesn't prevent organisation operating effectively etc. What is considered reasonable depends on the employer's circumstances, it's not defined.

They can still say no, albeit more carefully.

OP I’ve spent time on a mother and baby ward once with DD1 and only avoided it a second time with DD3 as there was nobody to have my elder DDs, so I was visited at home twice a day.

Recovering from illness like this is fucking brutal and I honestly didn’t think I’d survive it second time round.

You’re doing brilliantly. Get as much as evidence from your doctors/nurses and go at it from a OH and reasonable adjustment perspective.

I'm on leave today too, before anyone thinks i'm typing this from the office! Haha.

[quote AintNoPartyLikeANumber10Party]@careerchangemaybe you may be just short of the 12 month period of time to be protected from disability discrimination. Is it possible to delay your return until you hit this threshold (using banked holiday?) and then you could seek reduced hours as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act.

Tbh you don’t sound fully well yet and on that basis alone you should at least seek occupational health support. I would be very surprised if an OH assessor agreed you should return to FT hours immediately. Good luck.[/quote]
"Has lasted or is expected to last 12 months".

@AintNoPartyLikeANumber10Party

Thank you.

Does it make a difference if my mental health decline actually began in pregnancy and I was referred to the perinatal team for support more than 12 months ago?

My one point to you would be this. PT hours with a day off is really good for your mental health. Compressed hours with long days isnt always that good. Yes you have the day off but it sometimes makes things harder overall. Earlier mornings later evenings you get home and baby is straight to bed then you are up and out and barely see them. I have done 8 till 6 3 days a week before and found that I barely saw my child. I left at 6.30 before they woke up and got home at 7.15 just in time for them to go to bed. It felt like I lost my quality of time with them. In the end I just went PT so down to 27 hours with a full day off and normal start and end times. I know that's probably not going to happen in your current job but if you decide to look elsewhere it's worth bearing in mind with your separation anxiety.

@BitcherOfBlakiven

OP I’ve spent time on a mother and baby ward once with DD1 and only avoided it a second time with DD3 as there was nobody to have my elder DDs, so I was visited at home twice a day.

Recovering from illness like this is fucking brutal and I honestly didn’t think I’d survive it second time round.

You’re doing brilliantly. Get as much as evidence from your doctors/nurses and go at it from a OH and reasonable adjustment perspective.

I'm so sorry you went through that too It's absolutely brutal and not something people who haven't been through it can understand, I've found.