Prolapse : Request For Lighter Duties

[Reba0706]

Hello Everyone
I'm in a retail job in a very small organisation and I've got a stage 2/3 bladder and uterine prolapse which has just come on in the last few months.

In my job I'm required to lift 10kg crates aswell as lighter things but a lot of bending down. My physio and gynae have said avoid the lifting and bending but it's probably 50% of my job. The other 50% I can do seated at a desk.

I've spoken to my boss who isnt being the most supportive at the moment. I want to stay in work and not go off on sick but my boss is putting up barriers to reasonable adjustments for me...he says he can't think how I could do my job without the lifting. He has performed a very loose risk assessment which shows complete lack of understanding about what a prolapse is despite me explaining. He thinks I'm going to 'heal' if I do 2 months of kegels. Physio has said kegels might help but the amount of scar tissue internally will prevent a large part of the pelvic floor from responding so it's more of a change of lifestyle thing to put off surgery for as long as I can. Even after surgery I won't be able to go back to 10kg crate lifts.
We're small so we have 1 person in HR who I don't know and no occupational health team. I'm under the NHS but the only 'evidence' I have of my condition is a short email my physio sent to me about what kegels to do and briefly outlining what a prolapse is
A few queries I have if anyone can help:

1. Is it my job to make suggestions about reasonable adjustments. I could easily think of a few things he could do to make my time easier but as he's resistant should I be suggesting these or does he need to do this?
2. Should he be bringing some kind of occupational health advisor on board to assess my risk fully?
3. Am I actually entitled to ask for reasonable adjustments as this isn't effectively a 'disability' it's a condition
4. What evidence of my condition is he allowed to ask to see?
5. What evidence can I ask for from the NHS?

I've never had anything like this before, been lucky to never need sick leave/ have anything preventing me from doing my jobs in the past so I'm just trying to research myself but it's a minefield.
Ultimately I will be looking for a different job without any lifting but I've got ties to this job and I'd love for them to make it work for me but at the moment the support is lacking.... I'm being treated like this is my fault and I've chosen to prolapse.

Any help or advice would be gratefully received and thank you

You could get a GP to issue a fit note stating you need to do lighter duties. However :

“Do employers have to offer light duty work?
No. This is because there’s no set light duties at work law UK businesses are legally obliged to adhere to.

So, you’re under no requirement to offer this type of work if an employee isn’t able to carry out all duties relating to their role.

However, to help reduce the costs associated with employee compensation, or reduced productivity, you can offer ‘suitable alternative’ work for any members of staff unable to carry out the full duties of their job.

The Equality Act 2010 requires employers to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the work environment. The law protects people with disability from discrimination and allows them to work safely and productively.

Examples of reasonable adjustments at work include:

Adjusting performance requirements of the role.
Arranging/allowing flexible working hours.
Providing regular breaks.
Providing adjustable furniture.
It’s important to remember this isn’t an exhaustive list and the best adjustments are those that are tailor-made to your organisation and employees.”
croner.co.uk/resources/occupational-health/light-duties-at-work/

I’m sorry you’re going through this, but if even after surgery you doubt you’ll be able to do it again and it’s fifty percent of your job then I do think you’ve moved into the capability termination area, sadly.

Well if it were me I would be making suggestions, why sit there keeping things to yourself and wondering whether it is your employer’s job to do this, particularly when it is a small employer without the knowledge or resources to do so.

This is a relevant point, because “reasonable adjustments” does not mean the same thing for every employer. A large employer is more likely to be able to make a reasonable adjustment by deploying you to other duties, a smaller employer might not be able to do that and hence something that is a reasonable adjustment for a large employer is not reasonable for a smaller one.

If you cannot do 50% of the work and your employer has no other work for you to do, then reasonable adjustments might not be possible and capability termination becomes a possibility. I therefore go back to my first point, if you have ideas, share them!

Thank you. Whilst I have some suggestions for things I can do it was more from a perspective of having my tasks assessed formally by ideally someone in Occupational Health and them making suggestions as I feel I will have a tendency to put more pressure on myself and do too much if I make the suggestions myself.

When we're understaffed there are occasions when I know I put myself in situations where I shouldn't be lifting heavy things just to get things done where usually a 2 man lift would be necessary.
My direct boss isn't located in my workplace and rarely comes in person and he doesn't have a great grasp of all the heavy work the job entails as myself and two colleagues have grown this section of the business ourselves and I think there's an aspect of him not wanting to see it because he knows there are H&S breaches going on because the workplace is small and cramped and up a flight of stairs. I wish I'd stood up for myself earlier now.

I think you need to find another job - they can’t reallocate half your work, and what would they replace it with?