What is OH supposed to do?

[DetailMouse]

We as employers really want to do the right thing for staff and will ask for OH support whenever there is a MH or other health issue affecting either their work or attendance. It is always very much in the hope that we will better understand how to support the staff member, but obviously the ultimate aim is to fund a way that they can do their job.

We've tried two different OH providers and the reports are much the same and not at all helpful. They basically repeat back exactly what the staff member tells them, there's never any input for anything that might actually help the staff member or us. For example the one we've had this week is a fairly unusual condition (or at least I'd never heard of it) which affects mood. The staff member has never had formal diagnosis , but is very well informed on the condition via the Internet. The report just accepts that she has the condition, despite no formal diagnosis and is word for word what staff member tells us. I have a strong suspicion that the OH consultant had never heard of the condition either!

Is this usual or is there a way to get helpful advice?

I should say we employ 150 people, we're not a small business regularly having to refer people!

Do you employ an HR specialist? Or have one you are able to contact for specific advice?
Is their an absence issue you are trying to tackle? If so, maybe asking to seek a report from the employees GP would be better/more useful initially?

@Gazelda

Do you employ an HR specialist? Or have one you are able to contact for specific advice? Is their an absence issue you are trying to tackle? If so, maybe asking to seek a report from the employees GP would be better/more useful initially?

Yes we have an HR specialist but their advice is to make an OH referral, so we do.

In this particular case they have a lot of absence, are often not performing when in work and are asking for adjustments which are simply not reasonable or possible. We were hoping for some suggestions that might meet in the middle. Ultimately HR will advise to follow ill health capability and that may well be what we have to do, but by just repeating what staff member is saying it feels like OH have had no actual input and have done nothing to help either us or the staff member.

I realise there are other things we can do to progress things, I was just wondering whether this kind of service from an OH provider is normal or if we should try a third?

I used to be an OH nurse. It does sound very odd. Have you given specific requests for what you expect from the OH report, workplace adjustments etc?
Have the employees asked to see the report before you?

Yes, we asked for recommended adjustments and they say what the staff member has asked for, when it must be obvious to anyone that's not possible. They really are ridiculous! We have a number of other staff whose adjustments have been granted, we always do it if at all possible and had hoped we'd get some suggestions of something more practical here.

Our OH give us suggested adjustments, usually either what the employee is asking for or standard type adjustments for the condition.

However lately I've had a lot of requests for OH referrals because people want home working as a RA. All the advice has come back saying basically that's a business decision and not one has advised it's either appropriate or not.

They also advise on whether they consider the decision to be a disability per equalities act - if the employee has a number of conditions they specify which of them are and aren't disabilities for legal purposes.

We then get the report and have to decide for ourselves what adjustments we are going to put in place, bearing in mind "reasonable". OH is advice, not a directive. Realistically we put in all adjustments we can except for the utterly outrageous ones - for instance I had someone recently who wanted to work part time and be paid full time wages as a RA, and another who wanted all sickness absence disregarded and to be off sick whenever they wanted without impunity.

The key thing to get from OH, make sure they answer this, is whether or not the medical condition meets the definition of a disability as set out in the EA2010. They may try to avoid stating this, but it is your defence at an ET.

OH can be quite poor, as you have found they regurgitate what the employee says they need, particularly in relation to conditions that are not clear cut.

Personally I would research the medical condition and the standard barriers a person with that condition may have. Then work out the reasonable adjustments and whether or not they are feasible and reasonable. It’s amazing how many charities exist for each medical condition and the helpful advice they can give. Also check out the NHS website, again it can list the impact/barriers and possible reasonable adjustments.

Then meet with employee and go through the barriers they face at work - not the solutions, you may have to work hard to get them to look at the barriers. Barriers are typically more generic which allows existing solutions or more pragmatic solutions to be put in place as reasonable adjustments. This is not about minimising the impact of the persons needs it’s about finding the right solution for employee and employer.

Remember you can suggest alternative reasonable adjustments if the achieve the same thing of removing a barrier. An employee does not have the right to dictate what a reasonable adjustment must be if there is an equally valid alternative which achieves the same outcome. You can also refuse if it is not feasible to agree, for example an employee wants the reasonable adjustment to be they work 2pm to 10pm but your business operating hours are 8am to 8pm and after 8pm there is literally no work for them to do. You can offer them 12pm to 8pm, or to reduce hours to 2 pm to 8pm.

Employees often forget the EA2010 requirement is “reasonable” adjustments. Is there request reasonable, if not document why and this is the objective justification you would use at an ET.

One last thought, Access to Work, may be able to assist with reasonable adjustments.