Colleague dismissed due to cancer

[user9102991]

My colleague was dismissed earlier this month due to a long term illness (cancer). She has been off for just over a year and is going through chemotherapy.
I've never worked anywhere before where someone has been dismissed due to ill health, does this happen in most work places?

A few years ago my colleague was threatened with this, by the very large company we worked for. I told them id go to the papers if they pursued it further. They backed down, and she continued to work for them, for at least another 15 years.

Quite often in that situation you’re not getting paid. Sick pay runs out and whilst holiday pay accumulates you’re not paying them month to month.
In cases where you know they’re not coming back because it’s terminal and a death in service payment would be due if they were still employed it can be a real issue. Also in cases where private medical cover is part of the employment offer and the employee is now depending on that.

We had to let someone go after they had been off over a year with cancer. They were on full pay all that time. The company still incurs costs even if they keep you on at zero pay (NI, etc) and continuing to pay someone whilst also having to pay the person filling in for them is a huge amount of money. This person had no intention of coming back to work anytime soon, so sadly we had to dismiss them.

Hi I work in HR and have dismissed people in situations like this - however - all of them have been in agreement with the individual, based on what the individual wanted. Respectfully you don’t know a person’s individual circumstances- CSP and SSP only lasts for a certain length of time - once that runs out, including company extended pay, for some people it is better for them to be dismissed as it allows them to claim benefits from day one, vs staying employed and off sick on no pay and getting no financial support. Equally I have also kept people with terminal cancer on the books because that was best for them - as dying in service triggered death in service benefits. So whilst you are worrying I just want to say that you will never know the true circumstances and also don’t assume that a dismissal is the worst outcome for the person. If you are worried about your situation - perhaps seek financial advice into insurances eg life insurance income protection ect that pay out ££ with a diagnoses ect, might give you some financial peace of mind.

My mum has just spent 11 months off work battling cancer, she absolutely could not have worked at all during this time. She only had to have 1 round of chemotherapy in this time as well, which thankfully worked and she’s just gone back to her job. She was bed bound, wasting away and in a wheelchair for months at the start of her illness then had to endure chemo which made her sick and exhausted. Then it took time to build her strength and health back up. One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to cancer.

Obviously Daniel would be right (my favourite barrister) but there must have been something very specific to how they managed that case because it is NOT illegal to dismiss people due to ill health, even if that is a disability (which cancer is).

Seen it happen with a small business (only had three employees), similarly this person had 18 months off and then they were dismissed. I think the company had gone through all the correct channels, and the person dismissed was able to get ESA after, on top of Pip. I'm now with the Council and it's never happen with them.

We would all hope that employers would treat staff well, especially in such horrendous times. But I do also feel for the PP who talked about the impact on her team of having long term sickness continue to majorly impact for years. I think the PP from HR nailed it - when i have seen this happen, it has been very carefully handled. Its a shame that sometimes it sounds like it is not.

I’ve seen it happen loads in the NHS.

Have a colleague who has been off sick for almost 2 years. Generous full and half pay long exhausted. Think now claims ESA or UC. Most colleagues think could return, with reasonable adjustments for disability.
So still an employee but not on payroll. Still accruing annual leave.
Civil service so it takes long time. Management and HR clueless what to do next!

I had to leave my job because of cancer, yes. I wasn’t ‘dismissed’ but my contract wasn’t renewed after 6 months off on sick leave. A role was simply not made available to me at the next renewal after 6 years of employment.

Tbf, I’m not sure my line manager actually believed that I had cancer. 🙄 There was a lot of tutting and eye rolling about it. Even when I produced all the documentation of my sick leave from my oncologist and surgeon, they were a bit incredulous and almost offended that I dared to get ill and cause such an inconvenience.

It was all a bit shit, yes. It ended a 20 year career, which I now could not go back to (once you give up your foothold, the doors slam shut and there is no going back to another role, it’s a very small niche industry). But honestly, I have never felt more free than the day I knew I was officially unemployed. It was such a weight lifted off me because they had been so horrible to me all the way through. I didn’t even get a card or the usual leaving gift. It was like I died and they were like, okay then, and I never heard from them again. 🤷🏻‍♀️

It honestly was the best thing that could have happened though. I never would have left on my own, and it was exactly the change I needed. It’s been a blessing actually. I’m retraining and going self employed and I’m taking on a bigger role in our family business and life is much happier.

Yes- the NHS!
My colleague was recently dismissed after one year off with long Covid. It doesn’t qualify for medical retirement as not enough is known about the condition. It hasn’t existed long enough for it to termed as a permanent condition which people can’t recover from.
It particularly sad as the colleague was the healthiest and fittest person among us! They were extremely good at the job as well as fun to work with. It was awful 😞

F@ck me. Just brings into perspective what a brutal, miserable world we live in😔

I’ve come to the conclusion that all organisations are utterly atrocious when they need to be. All this we are a family and mental health is utter 💩

Yes, capability including for ill health is a potentially fair reason for dismissal.

A lot of insurance companies won’t cover you for critical illness if eg you have a hereditary cancer in the family.

You do

It doesn’t necessarily render you immune from dismissal though if there is no prospect of a return to work, even with adjustments

We had a guy apply who’d had cancer.

When he came to start it had come back. He died 8 months later. He was paid in full for the 8 months even though he’d never worked more than 2 days.

On the surface this looks terrible and callous.

Years ago I was a school governor. First meeting sacking the deputy due to capability (lack of) I forget what he was ill with now but he'd been off 6 months on full pay, next 6 on half pay then zero from the school. (This is normal employment/sickness policy from a state/LA school.). No prospect of him returning. After 12 months of absence you CAN be sacked.

First meeting and I'm thinking this wasn't what I signed up for - until it was explained to me that he'd wanted this as it opened up other benefits. He was expecting it and things had been negotiated beforehand.

One head I worked with tried to get rid of a senior colleague after 4 months. (Off with a breakdown that the Head had herself caused. Told by the LA's HR that she couldn't. Unions in etc.

It seems really sad. But there's only so long an employer (especially SME) can pay someone wages while they are not fulfilling their job role. Essentially that person's job needs to be done.

I would hope it would be classed as medical retirement, and that they were given some kind of remuneration package.

I'm sorry for the person and hope their health improves. X

The person was dismissed due to having cancer and having a terminal diagnosis. Because he was the only person made redundant and cancer is a disability, he was told that the legal position was he had a 'rock solid' legal case.
He told the caller that a dismissal based on disability could only be due to having an ignorant HR department. He actually checked the size of the company as he assumed that only a small company would be that unknowledgeable. He advised that the judge would absolutely find in his favour.

Jesus

Daniel Barnett’s not going to know enough about what happened based on someone phoning a radio phone in.

I had 6 weeks off this spring due to a mastectomy for breast cancer. I've worked for them for over 30 years. Ive bever had more than two days sick in a year before. Ive been given a warning for unsatisfactory attendance. If I have more than 4 days in the next year I'll move to the next stage.

I'm waiting for an unrelated hysterectomy. My employer (the Probation Service) won't respond to my request to clarify whether they require that I only take 4 days off following surgery. Boils my piss.