Health and unsupportive manager

[oystersbutnopearls]

Sorry this is going to be long!!

I have worked in an admin based role for 3 months. I applied under the equality act and disclosed my disability when applying, and have since discussed this at work so everyone is well aware. I had an operation that’s not directly for my disability but the problem the op was for has impacted on it (can’t give too many details as may be identifying) and the operation went wrong and was unsuccessful. I have since been left in a bad way, and my disability has been massively impacted by this. I went into work Monday morning and my senior colleague arrived, took one look at me and told me to go home and get myself sorted. I used my holidays for the operation and recovery time afterwards, however I haven’t recovered and need more time off. I tried to contact my manager several times over the course of the last couple of days, phoning and leaving messages and sending emails. I have asked if I could use holidays for the rest of this week to rest and recover. I went to the docs yesterday and I have an infection where I had the operation. I’ve explained to my boss how this has impacted my disability.

My boss finally replied this morning apologising saying they were waiting for a response from HR then they’d let me know. Now I have an awful feeling I’m going to lose my job over this (I’ve had some time off in my time there for appointments and such relating to the thing I had the op for and one short period of sickness where I was very ill)
My probation was supposed to end this month but I don’t think it will, and I’m worried they’re just going to terminate my contract and I’ll be out of a job.

However, I feel this could have all been handled better if my manager were more supportive about my disability. They knew about it when they hired me. The manager is hardly ever there, doesn’t work the hours they are supposed to and when they aren’t there they are unreachable (as demonstrated above - it was important for me to make contact however I couldn’t). I am nervous around them as I feel they aren’t taking me seriously even though I have provided plenty of evidence etc and they aren’t approachable and I feel I don’t have a working relationship with them because I hardly ever see them.

Do I have a leg to stand on? I know I’ve only been there a short period of time but surely as it’s disability related and they knew there’s something I can do?

From what you have said, you were sick, therefore you should take sick leave not holiday.

Sorry to hear about your health problems.

Why did you take holidays to cover your operation and why are you asking to take holidays now, when clearly on both occasions you were not well and should have been on sick leave? Is it because you'd only get SSP? I'd guess purely based on the information in your post that that's what they're worried about and talking to HR, rather than conspiring to sack you.

Yes of course it isn't brilliant from an employers point of view for you to have had to take some sick leave in the first few months of employment but hardly exceptional/disastrous IMO. I wouldn't necessarily leave to the conclusion that they want to fail your probation and it is quite possible that if they did it would qualify as dismissal based on your disability (as the sick leave was related to your disability) and therefore automatically unfair and against the law.

I sympathise with you re the distant/unavailable boss, I have worked with many similar types and it is difficult to know where you stand particularly at first when you don't know them well. Are you able to be a bit more assertive with them about what you need and why (an Occupational Health referral may assist if your company has access to this), and take active steps towards it. E.g. if you need to speak to them on a daily basis can you book phone calls in to their diary at a defined time? Or can you access the same support from a different colleague even if they aren't your manager?