Am I being discriminated at work against post natal depression which has lasted for more than 12 months?

[Skysha]

Hello everyone I hope you are all well....
So I'd like to ask for some advice if anyone has the spare time to lend me some as I am going out of my mind thinking of all the potential possibilities.
I had a set of twin girls in Feb 2018 and was meant to return to work as a Nursery Practitioner in a school at some point in Jan 2019
Since Jan I haven't returned, I was signed off until March due to PND(post natal depression) and since then I haven't returned even though I am fit to return.
There were various messages back and forth from occupational health to my psychiatrist to the school etc. Anyhow I recently had a new report from occupational and they have said, that due to the nature of the PND I should have a phased return to work in a supernumerary supervised capacity. I'm not entirely sure what that even means.
However, I have a very big gut feeling that the school will refuse and say they cannot accommodate around those reasonable adjustments and will want to sack me. The reason of sacking they will most likely put down to 'concerns of safeguarding'

So do I stand a chance of taking them to a tribunal?
Has anyone been in a similar situation?

It's a very confusing situation because they have been paying me since Jan 2019 when I should have returned. Part of me feels like they genuinely want me to return, but if they did then surely they would make those reasonable adjustments?

It just means that you will be an extra member if staff and will be working under supervision. So, if the nursery ratios mean that they need 6 staff, you will be there as number 7 and won't be able to work alone with the children. It's nothing to worry about, it's just there so that you are not under pressure and you can all evaluate how that is working before allowing you to take on the full role and work unsupervised. It's for everyone's protection.

I think it’s unlikely a school would have budget for an additional member of staff and would probably argue that’s not a reasonable expectation as an adjustment. It would cost thousands. Of course sick pay and/or a settlement also cost thousands!

Flowery, it won't be permanent, it's likely to be for a couple of weeks at most if everything goes well. It's fairly standard practice for this to happen when someone has been longterm sick. At the moment OP is being paid anyway so it's no extra cost to see if she is able to return properly.

Not all settings have insurance paying sick pay btw. To correct an assumption upthread

All sounds perfectly reasonable tbh.

Out of interest what does supernumerary supervised capacity return even mean? It means you won't be counted as a member of staff when they work out ratios of staff to children.

Good luck! Follow all suggestions to get back into work as soon as you are able too and I’m sure they won’t be able to sack you over this. You have been off on maternity leave and then very unwell and it sounds as if the school are trying to make sure everything has been thoroughly looked at with regards to you making a successful return to work.

When you say they didn't go through with the settlement, what do you mean? They withdrew it? or did you turn it down?

They withdrew the settlement suggestion. And yeah I did once disclose I wanted to harm my children. Bearing in mind I had a set of twins and was sleeping 2 hours a day with no extended family help. My husband was working extra as extras cost alot more. Anyhow I hallucinated etc and yes I disclosed some sensitive stuff but that doesnt mean I deserve to be refused to return to my old job because I said something. Plus my school aren't using that as a safeguarding concern, they used my mental health as a concern over what I disclosed.

It would be pretty neglectful for a school not to have sick pay insurance, I’ve never heard of it. The budget is tight (over 90% on wages usually).

OP I think you are getting a pretty rough time here, you are not the first to go through a MH crisis working in a school. Just try to work with them and hopefully it will come together. I presume you’ve been discharged from MH services?

An extra member of staff short termination the the be end and end all during a phased return. It just means a supply staff member can be used. Unless they’ve been daft enough to give someone a contract, which is their own issue

They withdrew the settlement suggestion. And yeah I did once disclose I wanted to harm my children. Bearing in mind I had a set of twins and was sleeping 2 hours a day with no extended family help. My husband was working extra as extras cost alot more. Anyhow I hallucinated etc and yes I disclosed some sensitive stuff but that doesnt mean I deserve to be refused to return to my old job because I said something. Plus my school aren't using that as a safeguarding concern, they used my mental health as a concern over what I disclosed.

I'm sorry, but I'm going to be blunt about this. I am very sorry for the circumstances you have gone through coping with the birth of your children, and I wish that that hadn't happened. But you really do need to get real. In the recent past you have threatened to harm children and you have disclosed sensitive information - by your own admission. Either of those things could have seen you dismissed already. Both of them, and most reasonable employers would have dismissed already. Your employer is being remarkably supportive in letting this go on for so long, and giving you opportunities to recover fully and return to work. That might not be what you want to hear, but what do you think will happen should any parent of children in your care find out that you have said / done. Sympathy is one thing, but nobody would want you within a mile of their child without absolute certainty that you will not do harm. Or disclose sensitive information.

This is not about what you "deserve". This is about whether you can repair a relationship which, whether intentionally or not, you have seriously damaged. It is for you to prove yourself, not for the employer. You simply cannot rely on "it was all my PND" or "it was all my mental health", because if this went to a tribunal, given what you have done, regardless of your reasons, it is very unlikely that you would find much support over a dismissal.

The reality is that even though you may not have been able to exercise control over what you did (or perhaps, even, because you could not exercise control), but these are very, very serious incidents and most people would have been dismissed a long time ago for them. The actuality is that your employer has continued to support you by giving you time to recover your health and their confidence, and also paying you during that time. That is one hell of an understanding employer, and you need to work with them, not accuse them.

Thank you moon dust 001. I really needed to hear a reply like that. I'll see how this last meeting does and then will resign if I have to rather than taking it any further.

Thank you moon dust 001. I really needed to hear a reply like that. I'll see how this last meeting does and then will resign if I have to rather than taking it any further.
But don't rush to resign. You need to be less reactive - a common enough problem when your mental health isn't exactly what it needs to be. They've been good with you so far, in circumstances that are trying for both sides of this. If they have run out of capacity to manage this, then that is sad, but realistic. But give them a chance. Try to be balanced. You don't have to run at them like a marauding army, but nor do you have to throw in the towel. If time has run out, take that graciously, thank them for their understanding and ask if they'd give you a good reference when you are returning to employment. Bear in mind that, given your occupation, there are sometimes things they must disclose to potential employers, but how they might choose to do that and what the choose to consider for disclosure can be important too.

Hopefully, they will be able to give you just a little bit more - it seems a shame to have come this far and not try for that final bit. If that is what is on offer, grab it and make the best of it. You just need to know that you are under a bit of a microscope. But I'm pretty sure that, if you think about it, if your children were in a nursery where someone like you was responsible for them, you would fell sorry for them but you'd also watch them like a hawk. And that's fair. Anyone would do the same. It'll take a bit more time for you to regain that confidence.

@Skysha

If it does get to a point where you clearly cannot continue working in that field, why don't you explore the possibility that your employer will fund some kind of retraining? You will have many skills that can be transferable, you just need to explore what's out there.

Quick update so my employer went back to occupational health and I have finally returned. It's a phased return and in Jan 2020 I'll be back to full time. I'm so happy they reconsidered. No way should people have to loose their job because they had PND. Women shouldn't even have to fear speaking up and risk loosing their occupation. Thank you everyone who comments

So glad your getting to return.

Also to anyone reading about your thoughts of harming your child. Intrusive thoughts is what they are called it's common with pnd and horrible to live through. Only people who haven't had it won't understand them.
Im glad you are feeling better from it all.

Thank you and yes I had thoughts and it's sad how quick people judge and assume your a horrid person. I had a set of twins and I was sleeping 2 hours a day. Ofcourse at some point I was going to have a major breakdown. I'm just glad I got better and got my job back.