incompitance of HR and my employer during MAT leave, please help/advise!

[minidisco]

Hi I am currently on maternity leave and due to return at the end of the year. I work for the local authority in a health role, and am based in a multidisciplinary team of other health professionals. I work full time. Prior to going on mat leave during an informal discussion with my manager it was agreed that I could return 3 days per week.

For the last 5 months of my mat leave I have trying to confirm this agreement. However, the manager left soon after I did, and since I have been off work there have been a further two managers in the post. Communication has been very difficult and all efforts from myself have basically been ignored/fobbed off. My request for a shorter week has also been refused, and I have been told my only option is to work full time hours condensed into a shorter week by working much longer days, which in order to enable me to get my daughter from her childcare provider in time means that I am going to have to use annual leave daily by taking one hour per day in order to finish in time. Additionally I have a health condition which I wanted taking into consideration, which despite my chasing up for the last two months had still not been referred to occupational health until I threatened HR with a formal complaint.

My question is, does this seem unreasonable to anyone else, or am I just making trouble for myself? My union haven't been particularly helpful but I am due to speak to them again tomorrow.

Does anyone have any advice/suggestions for how I proceed?! I really don't want to return full time, but I don't want to make myself I'll working stupid hours just so I get at least an extra day and a half with my daughter. This issue has completely overshadowed my MAT leave as it is causing me so much stress!

Have you put in a formal Flexible Working Request in writing and had a meeting with your new manager?

Yes and it was refused as the service is already short staffed and they can't afford to loose my hours. This was all done over email, and one short meeting with one of the managers that has now left. I have a meeting coming up due to my threatening to make a formal complaint, but I have been told their decision is final.

Your managers do have the right to say that flexible working won't work for business reasons. Can you just go back full-time?

If your request has been refused normally there is an appeal procedure Were you advised of this and did you appeal If your appeal was approved that is normally it you have to either go back on same hours or leave

Refused not approved

As long as the process was followed they are allowed to refuse your request, and it sounds as though they had reasonable grounds for doing so and also suggested a compromise solution rather than just flatly refusing.

You can appeal the decision if you haven't already.

Wanting a health condition taken into account might have muddied the waters a bit, but ultimately if for business reasons they cannot accommodate your request, a health condition you have isn't going to alter that.

If your health condition means you are not fit to work full time, have you provided a doctors letter confirming that, or similar?

I didn't know I could appeal so I will look into that. I understand that they are within their rights to refuse my request, its more the way that it has been handled that has upset me!

Easy to follow official information about flexible working here