Work being unreasonable, handed a work place adjustment form & told to get a doctor to look at it.

[TCrystal]

Hi so I’ve returned to work after being off with muscular/skeletal pain for 2 weeks. I’m 28 weeks pregnant and expressed my concern about travelling in rush hour traffic and that i start to get cramp half way through the drive. So asked for 9-5 to be 8-4 instead and basically got told they can’t just accommodate everything for me because I’m pregnant.

I don’t feel safe at work, I work in retail and asked to be moved onto lighter lifting but they’ve tried to get me on bakery which is harder than the department I’m already on. I feel like my head department manager isn’t very sympathetic and she basically told me that I have to work within the business needs and where I’ll fit?

i now feel anxious and will a doctor even look at a form my work place has given me regarding work place adjustments?

Yeah this is totally you having unreasonable expectations. You’ve highlighted a problem, they’ve suggested a bunch of options, but none of them are the option you want so you are finding fault with all of them.

your only real options are: stay where you are, take one/a combo of the options offered, get signed off sick for the remainder of your pregnancy.

I dont think working on the bakery then going to tills is ‘unsafe’ or unreasonable.

They’ve offered you adjustments; you only want to tidy up and work on the crisp aisle.

Just get yourself signed off, I can’t see how else you’ll resolve it.

I worked on Counters as a student. Agree it's going to be hard physical work when pregnant. Surely checkout staff can do a mix of sit & stand though?

But this option sounds perfect. They are moving you around to different jobs with different levels of sitting, standing etc. I think you are asking for something that doesn't exist. Grab the opportunity to do different roles, train up, then when you return you will be able to cover any time. Seems a perfect solution to me.

Honestly from an outsiders perspective it sounds like what you're saying is:

'I'm pregnant so I should get to work the hours I want and just flutter around the store doing whatever work I feel like doing, when I feel like doing it and take as many breaks as I like.'

That's not reasonable adjustments, pregnancy isn't an illness, you can have pregnancy related illnesses which require specific adjustments, but you aren't giving any specific adjustments you are turning down every suggestion they make and saying you should be able to decide in the moment what you want to do. How are they supposed to schedule staffing and assign work based on that? Should they just discount you and double up on your role on the basis that you might not want to do it that day?

I don't think there will be any pleasing you OP. Put to them what you actually expect/want and see what they say. If they say no then get signed off and then they'll start your maternity as early as they can because you're clearly unable to do your job the further on you are getting.

You're not doing 3 different jobs at once though are you!
I agree with the majority of other posters on here.
I have a colleague just like you, she goes on ML this week and all of us are counting down the days. She's a pisstake as well.

If she gets signed off on the sick she can stay on the sick till 36 weeks and her work can't do anything. Maternity will automatically start at 36 weeks.

It’s managers that are like you that are the problem. I’m simply asking for some structure? But obviously I’m not getting that.

I’ve literally been in Bakery asked the members of staff in there what they think of me being in there and all responses were “not safe for someone 7 months pregnant”. I lifted a rack full of pies and it’s heavier work the the job I’m already in.. again NOT a reasonable adjustment.

Its alright I’ll get advice off the medical professional.

You're asking for something different now again. Even a good manager could struggle with this. In one post you say just the one hour difference. In others it's about sitting, standing, breaks. All of these things are fair. But you can help everyone involved by being consistent.

Now it's structure. Do you have a special need for structure (mental health related perhaps?) If so, get GP evidence. If not, are you confusing what you'd prefer with a pregnancy or health related problem?

Get the things that aren't safe for you on your fit note: may be fit for work with the following adjustments. Then, wherever you are working, observe those limits.

Your managers don't get to override that. But they don't have to offer you exactly the hours, structure, and tasks you want either.

Your colleagues in the bakery are assuming you're lifting. Your managers say you'll be packing. Don't lift if it's against medical advice.

Your managers are behaving responsibly asking for medical advice, even if they are terrible people and bad communicators. Get the list of things you should not do. Don't do those things. Do what's safe in whatever role you're being paid to do, or if you're not well enough to do anything, return to GP and get signed off.

1:1 training in a new area is a very sensible thing for you to work on because it can presumably be adapted quite easily to your needs.

Hope the rest of your pregnancy goes well.

Not what I said - I said moving from hot food and pizzas over to bakery is unreasonable. Not going onto tills after bakery.

I don’t think people actually understand what it is like to be honest. Thanks for getting it and support. I have outlined what I would like but apparently that’s me being hard work? I was to have an hours swap and go onto shop floor with a mix of tills & not be thrown onto a heavier job, people saying “they’ve said no lifting” they also said that to me while I’ve worked the whole way through. But now I really don’t feel able to do it - that’s why I don’t have any trust

You need to be crystal clear with them what adjustments you'd like. They have put forward their suggestion. You need to be able to articulate clearly why these are not acceptable and what you can compromise on if anything

Yeah I struggle with wording things, I’m better at writing stuff down.. I do suffer with Anxiety and clearly this comes to play with all this. I don’t think people need to be so insensitive though. What’s okay for one might not be for others. My family and partner get it & that’s because they know what’s going on in the company aswell as shit going on now.

I was told by my employer "you're not the only pregnant woman at work, and no one else is asking for adjustments so it wouldn't be fair".
No consideration that every woman is at a different stage of pregnancy, and every pregnancy is different.

I can really understand why you are upset. Please push for an OH assessment and ask for a conversation with HR. Sorry you've had a difficult time and good luck for the rest of the pregnancy

Yes that makes sense.

What is it you would like?

Can I just add it wasn’t intended to be a post full of people being nasty/negative. I’m not the best at wording how I feel, I am an anxious person as it is.. I’m not soft or lazy or think because I’m pregnant I can’t do anything.

im being honest in saying, I’m in the third trimester & I’m beginning to get tired easily and general aches and pain.. for example the earlier leaving time. I don’t believe bakery to be a “reasonable adjustment” because it is more physical work than I already do. I don’t have confidence in the management and that’s where the issue lies. I’ve done 2 previous risk assessments and not one of the changes has happened with lifting/chemicals/freezers - I’ve done it regardless when I shouldn’t have.

I was told from 20 weeks to be careful which I relayed to the management team as I had notching through the cord, so that’s why I need to be catered for regarding moving around and sitting - to help blood flow to the baby if people don’t understand what notching is.

I then got admitted to A&E with a suspected Pulmonary Embolism - severe stabbing chest pains so yes I’m being careful and want some help and want to have trust in what I’m being “told” will happen. Maybe I am just anxious?? Only a doctor can tell me that..

I basically want a simple adjustment, an hours difference in travel & a mix of shopfloor light duties and tills as and when they need help. I honestly didn’t think it was unreasonable rather than me signing off with stress and anxiety

🙄

It sounds like they’re meant to suspend on full pay if a role isn’t suitable or deemed unsafe. is the only thing youd accept?