Or is my DMs employer?

[MrsWarleggan]

DM is in her 5th week of being signed off sick with cellulitis in her leg/foot.

Her employer is a supermarket.

She has been signed off for a further week and is having IV antibiotics administered at home for the next 5 days. Yesterday whilst I was there with the nurse she asked whether her slot tomorrow could be moved forward as she had to go in to work.

I asked why, and the nurse swiftly followed up with the same question. DM said she had to go in for a welfare chat because she has been off for a while.

I went absolutely berserk and told her she wasn't going anywhere and she said if she didn't go in she would fave disciplinary and an official warning.

The nurse told my DM that under no circumstances should she be going anywhere.

DM called her boss and was told "I'm very disappointed in your devision to not come in considering you are fully aware of the repercussions should you not"

I am fucking livid! If a welfare check is so important why aren't they coming to her? Would she be expected to go in if she was on IV antibiotics in hospital?

My DM is so upset 🥺

I think work are perfectly within their rights to carry out a wellbeing check and most of them would by 5 weeks - just to see how she is, if there’s any updates from work or any adjustments that are going to be needed on return to work.

But it doesn’t have to be face to face and given your mothers illness it would be appropriate for it to be over the phone or simple email.

Who is the welfare chat with?

They are unreasonable to not come to her.

They will be wanting to follow a process because generally more than 28 days sick is considered long term. If they are of the view that her illness means she cannot do her job at all, legally they can dismiss her, but they will need to show they have followed a proper process. It may not be that they want to dismiss her, but most large employers will have standard procedures will kick in so that if illness that completely prevents work goes on long enough, the employee can be dismissed and replaced.

@DrWhoNowww

Completely agreed. I often perform welfare checks in my role. Weekly over the phone and if for longer periods I visit them at home.

I don't tell them they have to come in to the workplace and tell them if they don't it will be a disciplinary offence with a formal warning.

Quite simply you need to see what is written in her employer's absence management policy. Good practice would be to contact her in writing to inform her of any move from initial absence to further stages within the policy and provide a copy of policy so she knows what to expect. I alway assume poor practice when this is done by telephone as there is no proof that policy is being adhered to.

I would suggest your next move would be to request a copy of the absence policy and check that what her manager is telling her verbally actually matches what is written in policy. I would suspect, as she has been threatened with some form of "sanction" that this may not be the case. Start taking notes of names, times and form of contact and get that policy!

Is it that the employer asked her to come in for a welfare check and your dm agreed? Rather than ask if they could come to her or do it over the phone/online?

It may be something as simple as crossed wires and that her boss has taking her saying no to going in as a refusal for the welfare check under any circumstances?

Some people are in hospital for longer than 5 weeks. Welfare check fine, welfare check in person when she's not well enough - not fine.

Cellulitis is a dangerous condition if it's not brought under control. My sil was recently hospitalised on an emergency ward. He was given more than 20 sets of iv antibiotics before it was brought under control ..and that was k in a single room in a hospital with no visitors. She should not be going out and exposing herself to further infections until this is brought under control. The NHS, which is under pressure does not send valuable staff out to homes unless extremely necessary. This in itself should tell the employer that your DM is not fit to come to work. If they are in any doubt about this they should be coming out to her.

Most of the longer term illness I've managed has been dealt with over the phone. The only time I've encouraged face to face is when it's been for mental health but I've never ever made them feel they had to come in to me. I'd always offer to go for a coffee somewhere or visit them at home.

It's possible they don't understand the seriousness of her condition. I've worked for supermarkets before and any meetings/check ins were based around what the employee could do.

@shiningstar2

This is her 5th type of antibiotic she's on both IV and oral. She has had it before (a couple of years ago) and the nurse said when you have had it once you are almost guaranteed to get it again. She also suffers with odema which cleared up after doubling her water tablets, but that started to play havoc with her kidneys.

According to my DM the girl in question is making a bit of a name for herself in store and wants to move quite swiftly up the ladder having started as a Saturday girl and getting to where she is now in a very short space of time. Think cut her in half and she would have the name of the store going through her like a stick of rock. DM has sent her an email stating she is very happy to have a conversation over the phone or on Teams but that she won't be going in to the store. Let's see.

I hope your SM is strong enough not to feel intimidated.
Tell her to make notes of what is said.

I think as a nurse said to DM then regardless of usual way things are done dm needs to follow this advice. Cellulitis can be difficult to get under control I had a colleague who had it and was off for a long time

I expect the nurse was also thinking if your DM can go to work then she could go into the GP surgery for her IV and not waste a home visit as well.

Did tour mum made it clear that she was happy to have the welfare check but that she can't come in as per medical advice.

Or did she say she wasn't available at all?

I don't understand why a Zoom meeting wasn't suggested by either side.

She was going to go in. After speaking to the nurse and me putting my view across she called to say she wouldn't be coming in and her boss responded in the way she did. She then sent a follow up email yesterday saying:

As per our telephone conversation, and on the advice of my nurse, I will not be attending the arranged welfare check in person. I am more than happy to attend the meeting over telephone call or Teams/Zoom. I hope considering the circumstances this can be arranged."

Still waiting for a response.

A welfare chat is fine but they should absolutely not be making her go in for it. They can speak to her by phone.

My former employer made me go in for similar reasons when I was signed off for six weeks (despite the fact that I had a doctor's note and they were fully aware I'd had a fairly major operation for which six weeks was the minimum recovery period). It was a horrible experience and I know now that I should have refused.