Migraine absences = attendance review meeting

[Alwaystired80]

Hi there.

So I have worked for NHS 7 years. Being in my current dept 3 years. Made them aware when first started and when interviewee for current job I suffer from migraines.

So had 3 occasions of absence in 12 months, all because of migraine and months apart. On two occasions had one day off and other occasion 2 days. So 4 days off in 12 months.

Been told by my team leader my manager wants to have an Attendance Support Review Meeting. Never even heard of this. When I've looked at the policy it states "where monitoring identifies that recurring patterns of absence are emerging over time the manager may decide to address this by instigating the Short Term Sickness Absemce Procedure... would include prolonged periods of absence where the employee has returned back to work but has been unable to maintain their absence or several occasions of repeated or intermittent absences".
It states I would be told what a reasonable level of absence would be and would allow 2 absences in 6 months. I will be reviewed every 6 months.

Am I right to be annoyed and upset about this? All 3 absences were due to migraine which they know I suffer. Should they not take this into account? If I didnt suffer from migraines I would have gone 14 months without any absence. My absence over past 3 years is not bad.

For background I have suffered from migraines for 30 years, saw a neurology consultant in 2018 and diagnosed with chiaria malformation, been on 4 different types of preventative.

My meeting is tomorrow. Does anybody have any advice? Anyone suffers from migraines or dealtnwith employees with migraine?

Thank you 😊

Also ask for anti-nausea medication. There are a number of pills, buccal tablets and patches they can prescribe. I found years ago that if I can get the nausea under control early, it tends to reduce the severity or even stop an attack.

How did the meeting go OP?

I get one or two a year which doesn’t usually trigger policies but my problem is I can’t speak (I can’t think of the right words and ramble nonsense) or think properly so calling in is very hard. I have to spot the signs very early and take triptans and let my husband know and hope I’ve got enough time to ring in before crawling into bed.

Your migraines sound a bit like mine and there’s no way I could work. I’m blind with auras and cant speak so would be a complete liability. I would just reiterate in any meeting that I’m doing everything possible on the nhs to prevent these and hope I wouldn’t have more than two in six months but ultimately it’s not in my control.

It’s like saying to an epileptic they can only have one fit per six months and expecting them to “arrange” that 😂

The absence reporting system used, you are not allowed anyone to call on your behalf. We were told even if we were admitted to hospital, we had to call in ourselves! I'm really not exaggerating!

They have waived it but it had to go to another manager. I had read the policy correctly and a manager can use their discretion. They said they were too hasty and sorry it had upset me so much.

Exactly this! They said oh if you'd got the migraine 2 days later you'd be past the 12 months but this is not how migraines work!

I don't work in the NHS, but I don't understand why you're freaking out so much.

In my role as a Manager, 3 absences in 12 months would trigger a conversation. And unless there's a real issue to be addressed, it's just a box ticking exercise. It's there as a framework for when there is a real issue of someone taking the piss.

Actually, an employer could absolutely say that someone with epilepsy cannot take sick days in a fixed period without consequences at work - that's perfectly lawful.

I totally understand why you're upset, but you really don't seem to grasp that they absolutely CAN put restrictions on your sickness absence and they can sack you if your absence rate is too high. They don't give a shit what the cause is and it's essential that you understand this. The Migraine Trust will tell you the same thing.

I'm not saying they cannot but the point is they can use their discretion. I was off for one day with a condition they are aware about just inside the 12 months. I can understand f I were off for a couple of days or a week each time for my absence. My absence for the past 7 years is not bad and I've not not had more than 3 times off in a year.

They do give a shit what the cause is (my manager made this clear when talking to them) and my meeting with Occupational Health is to help manage my condition. This is in line with the advice I have sought from The Migraine Trust (they emailed me).

So glad I don't work with you.

It was me that recommend you speak to The Migraine Trust.... I'm also someone who has had migraine up to 28 days a month at the worst (if you read back) and have nearly been sacked before for my sickness levels.

I'm currently unmedicated due to neurology errors, so I'm actually in a mess with attacks every other day right now and just trying to survive until I get my preventative injections back which will be another month or so, then I need to wait for them to kick in.

I'm trying to get you to comprehend the severity of the situation you're in, so you do not underestimate what you are up against. Employers are NOT sympathetic to migraine in my lengthy and shitty experience and you need to be prepared to deal with the usual disbelief of the severity or even of their existence, the "it's just a headache" morons and the "just take better medicine" types as you'll meet all these people during any sickness / capability process.

Occ Health can make all the recommendations they like, but you're employer is under no obligation to fulfil them if they do not feel they are reasonable.

Whilst working for a government agency which specialises in health, I was refused all OH recommended reasonable adjustments for my disability including simple things like adjusted trigger points for sickness absence, a static desk instead of hot desking - both because it wouldn't be fair on other people... And they refused to install light switches instead of motion sensitive lights in the office because of cost so I couldn't sit in a darkened room, ever.

OH were great, HR and management not so much.

They'll say lots of nice sympathetic things to your face, but I wouldn't trust any of them to implement any of it. They will still have to enforce whatever the policy is in the end.

I didn't work for the NHS but I got so much grief for having time off for migraines that I left my job before they could sack me.

I didn't start getting migraines until I was in my 50's and had been in my job for a couple of years. The manager could not understand how I went from never being off sick to suddenly having to take lots of time off.

Unless someone has had a migraine they usually just don't understand what it actually is. My manager asked why if other people could come to work with a migraine I couldn't!

I could not even sit up in bed and if I needed the loo I had to crawl along the floor because trying to stand would make the room spin and me throw up.

They would last between 2 and 5 days and even though I could not even keep a sip of water down I was continually being sick just bringing up bile. Sometimes every 10 mins! I was given anti nausea medication but it never worked. Most time my DH had to ring the GP to come out to give me an injection to stop the throwing up.

As well as the terrible headache and the throwing up I also lost most of my sight, had terrible pains down the side of my face and jaw, numbness in my hands and could not talk properly (just talked rubbish).

My workplace had the policy that if you were off sick you had to phone in yourself but I just couldn't so DH used to phone for me and that got really angry about that. When I did try and phone and they couldn't understand me I got accused of acting.

Hi, definitely ask for an occ health referral. I work in the private sector and have migraines: much more frequent than yours, and was off work for a month due to them. OH advised it is probably covered under disability act in my case. Work have been amazing in putting reasonable accommodations: basically work from home and complete flexibility over hours; so long as the job gets done.

That’s bloody awful. Last year my migraines were much worse than they are now: exactly how you were describing. My work couldn’t have been more supportive

Apologies then for my reply this situation has just been really tiring.

I've got an appointment next month with Occy Health.

My manager when I spoke to them said that they do really want to help when I have migraines but I know there is the policy to follow and there must be consistency across the board. Its just the fact it was just one day I had off and if I'd been ill 2 days later I would not have triggered anything. I've only been off 4 days in 1 year ot just makes you think well I should take the maximum 12 days a year if same outcome.

Did you provide your employer with any letters from consultants etc? I thought that employers were under a legal obligation to implement the reasonable adjustments?

Thanks for your reply. I don't suffer from enough migraines for it to be considered a disability but am hoping Occy Health might let me wfh when I feel one coming on (I wfh one day a week anyway).

I do all the things you are meant to do to avoid migraine although this isn't always possible. I'm thinking of going to GP and asking to try a new prevevative but scared of any side effects.

Severe enough migraines are a disability. Actually mentioned on p38 of https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a80dcc8ed915d74e6230df4/Equality_Act_2010-disability_definition.pdf/preview

Not putting in manual light switches, fixed desk, adjusting absence triggers etc is a failure to make reasonable adjustments. Get legal advice as you might have a viable tribunal case.

Sorry replied to wrong post.

What you describe with the sickness is exactly what I experience. Before I get a migraine anything I eat or drinks sits on top of my stomach- it's such a weird feeling - and not could be hours later when the migraine starts and I vomit everything. Bit then I will be violently retching even though my stomach is empty. Its just the worst. Especially when all the other symptoms have started as well. Its awful but.ive even thrown up in public as its come on so quickly.

I am so sorry you suffer horrendously from them x

I don't suffer from enough migraines for it to be considered a disability

I'm not aware of a minimum frequency for that. Certainly, there's not one mentioned in the fluctuating conditions section of the Govt guidance I linked.

What's your source for that assertion?

I thought this was the case. The above poster has been treated horrendously by their employer.

I chose to change job and now WFH full time where I have control over the whole environment. Much easier!

I do know, however, that a colleague successfully sued them three times over 20 years for similar refusal to make reasonable adjustments for her disability - she is blind and had nothing but trouble with them.

Remember, reasonable adjustments do NOT have to be implemented if the employer believes the adjustments are not reasonable. This could be due to cost, actual ability to implement them, and how much help you might get from an adjustment....

Employers can be wankers and I trust none of them with disabilities. They say all the things when it suits them though.

a colleague successfully sued them three times over 20 years for similar refusal to make reasonable adjustments

You would have thought that they would have learned from the first tribunal...

@VitoCorleoneOfMNMafia At least two were settled out of court..... She signed NDAs, but we all knew what went on! :-D

In my case, I hated the work anyway so was making deliberate efforts to sort my chronic migraine out and get the hell out of there. I also wanted to stay in the Civil Service and didn't fancy having a case ongoing while I went to a new government department. Leaving was easier but also faster.

I'm in a job I enjoy now with the added bonus of a superbly supportive manager (unquestionably the best leader / manager I have ever worked for) and whilst I'm currently unmedicated and really struggling health-wise, I know that he's got my back.

I have no problem my 3 absences going on record. However it is a formal attendance meeting which is triggered, at managers discretion. They can decide to waive this, and they did so for a colleague although I did not refer to this, which is why I had a problem with this. I felt the meeting could be waived as my 3 absences were migraine related and I had had just 1 day off for my third absence. I had also asked for referral to OH.