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Time off from work

Employers have responsibilities towards their employees. This includes managing both planned and unplanned sick leave - and helping their staff plan a return to work.

If you take time off, try to keep in touch with your employer during the time you are away from work.

This may include:

• keeping in regular contact
• asking to be kept up to date with what's happening at work
• asking about your colleagues
• asking for reassurance that details about your illness or disability remain confidential, if that's what you want

This should help you feel less isolated and lessen any worries you may have about taking time off and/or returning to work.

Statutory Sick Pay

If you are an employee and unable to work because of an illness or disability, you may be able to get Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). Some employers have their own sick pay scheme instead.

If you're still unable to work after 28 weeks, or you cannot get Statutory Sick Pay, you can apply for Employment and Support Allowance.

• Statutory Sick Pay (general money, tax and benefits section)

• Employment and Support Allowance

Keeping your job open

Your employer should not put pressure on you to resign because you have become disabled. Dismissing someone simply because they have become disabled is likely to be direct discrimination which is unlawful.

If you are covered by the disability provisions of the Equality Act 2010, your employer has a duty to make reasonable adjustments for you. These include adjustments to your working arrangements or workplace to avoid you being substantially disadvantaged compared to non-disabled people in carrying out your job.

To find out if you are likely to be covered by the Act, follow the link below.

• Disability and the Equality Act 2010

Examples of reasonable adjustments

Reasonable adjustments may include things like:

• a phased return to work – perhaps working flexible hours or part-time
• time off for medical treatment or counselling
• allocating to another employee some tasks that can no longer be done easily by you
• providing practical aids and technical equipment for you

Businesses and organisations vary in structure and size, so what may be 'reasonable' for one may not be so for another.

Access to Work scheme

Depending on your disability, a return to the same role may not be appropriate.

Your employer could speak to a Disability Employment Adviser at a Jobcentre Plus office to understand their responsibilities towards employees who are disabled. A solution to any problems employees have could be help provided through the 'Access to Work' scheme.

• Access to Work - practical help at work

Planning to return to work

If you are disabled you are more likely to be healthy if you stay active by working. Discuss with your employer how they, and you, will manage helping you to return to work.

You and your employer may agree to formally let other people know about your disability. This may be a 'hidden' disability such as diabetes or a mental health condition. If you do agree to let work colleagues know, you should sign a consent form. This gives your employer permission to tell one or more named individuals. This is to comply with the Data Protection Act.

• How work can keep you healthy (employment section)

Performance records

If you take time off for disability-related sick leave, it is good practice for your employer to record it separately from other sick absences.

Time off from work should not be recorded as an 'absence from work' if you're waiting for your employer to put reasonable adjustments in place. Or your employer is conducting training for the use of these reasonable adjustments.

Leaving work

Your employer must first consider if you could do the job if all reasonable adjustments were put in place. Your employer may be able to dismiss you if, even with all reasonable adjustments, your disability means that you cannot carry out your job.

A reasonable adjustment might include moving you to another suitable job if you cannot do your normal job. However, it may not be possible to move you into another role if the employer is a small organisation. Therefore dismissing you may be allowed.

Redundancy

If an employer is considering making people redundant, the reasons for selecting people for redundancy should not discriminate against you because you are disabled.

The reasons for selection should not put you at a disadvantage, unless there is a clear and fair reason. Nor should the employer treat you unfavourably because of something connected with your disability, unless they can fairly justify the treatment. Something connected with a disability might be having to work flexible hours for disability-related reasons, for example.

If an employer is consulting about any future redundancies, they should take reasonable steps to make sure you are included in the consultations.

The employer must make reasonable adjustments to any criteria used to select employees for redundancies, so that the criteria do not substantially disadvantage you. For example, it could be a reasonable adjustment for the employer to ignore disability-related sickness absence when using attendance as a criteria for selection.

• Redundancy and leaving your job (general employment section)

Useful contacts

• Employment contacts