Holiday photos on Facebook whilst off sick

[TeaAndBrie]

Really interested to hear opinions on this one.
Staff member off long term sick (fully paid as local gov) due to mental health issues, signed off by GP for 4 months so far.
staff member is friends with manager on Facebook.
staff member has been uploading photos of holiday abroad on Facebook.
i would not expect someone who is on LTS for mental health reasons to never leave the house etc
Holiday photos seem a bit much though - especially when manager and other colleagues who can see these pics are having to pick up all of the work whilst he is away.
YABU - let them have their holiday, it’s good for them!
YANBU - let them have the holiday but would be better to have have pics on SM

Well that's kind of the point, everybody is different - nobody is forcing anyone to go on holiday and nobody shouldn't be trying to shame anybody for going either. Everyone is different, there are hundreds of different kinds of holidays, and you may find the idea of going on holiday while signed off work stressful but someone else may find the prospect of hanging around their house and hometown for the entire period of their line stressful. I can understand both. I honestly don't see any reason not to go on holiday, or to need to keep it a secret.

Point made. Lived experience only qualifies you to talk about what you are able to do. (Or not do).

I was once being paid to do the work of someone on long term sick- who then paid me a for a week on my caravan. I felt very awkward about the whole situation

You've posted @op4 replies from 400. I haven't read the thread, but yes that would piss me off big time. If someone needed to pop their local town to drop off a library book, if they've been at home, quietly reading to help recover from their health stresses, or to the supermarket because the online delivery was short. But to go on holiday overseas and post that on Facebook i.e. publicly, I have a problem with that, that is not mental health recovery. That is taking the piss to other employees and the organisation. You are the manager now manage properly.

Similar here. When I had PTSD going on holiday (getting away from the location of the most recent traumatic incident ) was hugely helpful.

I dont know why your all ganging up on me when 54% of people agree with me

That’s exactly your problem. You’re basing everything on your experience. That’s not the same as others experience.
If someone had a horrendous experience of childbirth does that mean they can know that everyone’s will be horrendous and advise that anyone who says it wasn’t a horrendous experience must be lying?

Medical advice from my GP when I was signed off with stress was to " socialise and exercise". Not "read books quietly and nip to Tesco once a week".

As an educated manager who understands mental health is complex and varied I would just want to know that someone was doing whatever they and their doctors felt would be helpful.

No you really are clueless and clearly incapable of viewing anything outside of your own experience. I am off on sick leave for work based stress and the one thing that I feel has started helping me turn the corner was a trip away. While I've been in the house for weeks I have been getting worse not better. But hey if you're not the same then I must be lying because clearly you have the knowledge!

Thank you.

I was specifically talking about clinical depression when your in an episode. You know where the symptoms are you have no motivation or interest in things, withdraw from others, lack of energy, neglecting hobbies and interests, avoiding social activities. You know the actual criteria for depression. It doesn't quite match up to going on holiday

Wait… are you seriously suggesting someone off sick with mental health issues should only be going to a supermarket if they can’t get a delivery?

Yes you state socialise and exercise. A walk to Tesco deals with that perfectly. Please name your supermarket of choice. That is surely very different to being all over social media on a foreign holiday. The threads on here alone about the stress of flights, AI buffets, pooing in foreign toilets - not very relaxing surely? Unless you are not really that stressed.

But work based stress isnt a mental illness

Why the assumption a foreign holiday means a package holiday in benidorm?

There's plenty of other types of holiday.

And I am pretty sure the doctor meant walk somewhere nice and sit in the pub with some friends. Indeed I know he did because he mentioned some nice local walks and he said he hoped to see me with my friends in the local pub.

It is when it leads to anxiety attacks, depression etc etc.

Anxiety attacks is also not a mental illness. Clinical depression is as it a chemical imbalance in your brain.

You are one of the examples of what's wrong with humanity.

What this thread has said for me is how far we still have to go in mental health care. So many people on here who are completely ignorant of the breadth of problems and how they can interact with different roles. How you can be completely burned out and incapable of functioning at work, but still able to exercise, climb mountains etc. It is your brain that is overwhelmed and needs to stop, not your body.

And vice versa, people claiming you can work while recuperating after injury or surgery. That clearly depends on the physicality of your job. Doesn't stop you being able to lie on a beach though.

Nothing wrong with being on holiday. Being signed off means being unfit for work not unable to live a life. But I agree posting on SM is possibly misguided

Agree. And that people can present as coping to everyone and be falling apart on the inside. And due to these misconceptions about mental health may not even realise they need to seek help urgently, or may not know how to articulate how much they are struggling when on the surface they are still holding everything together.

You know this is one of the trick questions pip assessors will ask you when their pretending to be nice. Have you been anywhere nice this year. If you answer yes to this bye bye pip as it shows your quite capable. It may be hard for some of you to hear but its the reality.

I swear we've lost all persecutive in this country, and it's why we're one of the least productive countries in the world... of course it's not ok, if an employee of one of my businesses did this I'd be fuming and I AM sympathetic to mental health illness having suffered myself. Businesses don't run on fumes.

So many variables here. It could have been booked for months so why waste it! Also with MH getting out is a huge positive.

Im a firm believer in work, work and work some more (I have physical issues that disable me) they prevent me at times being able to fulfil my potential and it is massively frustrating (for me and my employer)

I have had some “reasonable adjustments” made but until you are in the shoes of someone being mentally or physically unwell it is hard to comprehend.

When on sick leave, a person is entitled to do whatever that may be to make them feel better.
They don’t have to run a day out (could be just one!) past anyone and least of all their employer.

Years ago I managed a hotel and I’d have staff messaging at ridiculous times saying they were unwell and couldn’t make their shift. At the same time they were posting their nights out on Social Media.

I think this is a completely different scenario and it needs to be dealt with accordingly and with empathy and respect.

Maybe check that out with ACAS who view it differently as below -

Is work-related stress recordable as a mental illness case?

Answer: Mental illnesses, such as depression or anxiety disorder, that have work-related stress as a contributing factor, are recordable if the employee voluntarily provides the employer with an opinion from a physician or other licensed health care professional with appropriate training and experience

I'm not going to engage with you anymore though as you are clearly a person who as I originally said, is unable to see or consider any other viewpoint than your own. And given I am referring to myself I kind of think I am capable of determining whether my current issues are mentally or physically based.