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Employee diagnosed with Diabetes.

M

mvaughan

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2
Hi Everyone,

I am new to the forum. The reason i have registered is because one of my employees has recently been diagnosed with Diabetes and is currently off work. I was wondering if anyone could give me a steer on what i should expect when he returns to work. I am currently paying him whilst he is off sick (this week will be his third week) which will no doubt cause friction amongst other employees as i generally do not pay staff whilst off work sick unless there are extenuating circumstances (i very rarely pay for casual sickness ie 1 day here and 1 day there). I want to be supportive, yet need to ensure i treat him fairly with other employees so i was hoping i could build a picture of what he is likely to need from me when he returns and of course what i can expect from him.

If someone could explain how often he is going to need doctor's appointments and what other arrangements may be necessary. He currently has a 10-15 min break in the morning, 1 hour lunch and then a 10-15 min break in the afternoon.

Basically any help and advice would be great.

Many Thanks.
 
I would refer to Diabetes UK. They have loads of information for all sorts of eventualities. and keep leaflets on legal matters.
Hana
 
Hi.
Welcome to the forum.
Is your employee off work because of the Diabetes...or something totally unrelated ?

In my experience Diabetes in itself doesn't stop any body working, it is a condition. Not a sickness.
Hypoglycaemia and Hyperglycaemia can be causes of abscence, but are usually transient and soon pass. I have never had a day off work because of Diabetes, flu etc yes...? It may require some adjustments to working patterns, depends on the control that is managed by the person. There is no set regime. Injections and other medications should all fit into work life fairly seamlessly.

I am sure as an employer you are familiar with the Disability Discrimination Act ? You should read that carefully to see what rights both the employee and the employer has. It is quite comprehensive and very clear. The CAB provide clear explanations on their website.

As for sick pay, well that is something we could start a whole new discussion about. It is good that you are treating him well at the moment. Some employers are very lax in paying sick pay. I have friend off work at the minute because of an injury suffered at work. Employer isn't interested, no sick pay other than SSP and no thought of the welfare of the employee. Sad, but representative of many archaic employers ?

As before adjustments may need to be made. Something you and he will have to discuss and agree on when he returns. Dr's/Hospital appointments are all covered in the DDA regulations. They shouldn't really be too onerous ?

It is good that you have taken the time and effort to find out more. Hope I have given you some food for thought ?
 
Thanks for the responses Hanadr & Cugila.

Cugila,

The employee is off work due to Diabetes (that is what is stated on his doctor's note)

Hanadr,

I was looking more for bullet points rather than trawl through websites and leaflets. I am sure people will have first hand experience of what an employer did or did not do which either made things easier for the employee or caused further distress.

If anyone has any examples of the above that would be a great help.

Many Thanks
 
I think what you are asking is...

Will he need loads of time off for diabetes appointments etc. and the answer to that is no more than any other employee.

Will the diabetes cause him to have more time off sick. Again the answer is no more than any other employee.

You do not say what type of work is involved, if its strenuous manual labour he may need to stop and check his BG more often.

As an employer you need to be aware of the signs of hypo and what to do if it happened, as do the others working with him.

Once he has got to grips with monitoring and balancing sugar levels the chances are nobody will be any the wiser about his diabetes condition.

He will not have to shave his head and walk around with a sign saying unclean. Well maybe on a Friday :lol: :lol: :lol:

Its good that you want to be supportive, many employers are not. :(
 
I applaud you for being supportive but I also think you are a bit confused as to why this employee needs to be off sick for 3-4 weeks "due to diabetes"!! I think you are perfectly entitled to find out from you employee what is going on, why he is off and when you can expect him to return.

Is your employee off sick because of hospital appointments or is he/she in hospital with diabetic complications or??? You don't "need" 3 weeks off because of a Diabetic diagnoses itself, but he/she could suffer from complications or a depression due to diagnoses.

You are a champ for supporting her/him - but if you are paying them full wages, I would considering putting him on SSP after 4 weeks unless the Employee contract states something else.

What you need to know is what type of Diabetes you are dealing with, what medications and/or insulin is he going to be on. If on insulin they will probably need to inject several times a day and "sharp" bin could be useful to have at the work place.

Also, as an employeer you will need to know any restrictions the employee is facing in his workload - is his/her work very physical? Does it include driving any vehicles during work hours and will the DVLA continue him to allow to operate such.

If you have appointed/trained First Aiders at work, you might want to have them attend a course in how to deal with hypos etc.

Firstly however,you need to find out what is going on with your employee. Hate to point this out, but he/she could be taking advantage of the situation and having a "paid holiday" - it is unfortunately not unkown for some people to take advantage, but only you know your employee and giving him/her the benefit of the doubt and offer your support is First Class treatment, but cover yourself too - you have other employees who will see what is happening here and in future could point out that you set a presidence for absence, here.

Be supportive, but don't get taken advantage off either.

Best
Alice
 
This is quite a difficult question.
Personally I don't miss any more time at work than I used to, but every case is different.
Could you go and speak to him/her and find out what the situation is?
Some people would see this as you being a caring employer whilst others would see it as an intrusion.
I don't know what relationship you have so it is awkward for me to advise.

I know that after diagnosis some people do become depressed, but the doctor should have specified this as the cause. There could be other complications that are still being assessed.
It's no fun to find out that you have an incurable condition.
You sound like a good employer and the fact that you are asking for advice supports this.

I think most of us would applaud your attitude and at the same time be critical of anyone who used diabetes as an excuse to cry off work.
The latter does none of us any credit.

As far as time off for appointments; I did have quite a few after diagnosis (and my employer was very supportive of this) but now it's about once every three months and usually in my own time.

One thing I would definitely do, is recommend this forum to your employee.
It has been a godsend to me because it is populated by people who live with this condition every day of their lives and truly understand it.

I wish I could be of more help.

Regards,
Mike.
 
Everyone presents differently with diabetes. I spent months feeling very ill before I finally got a diagnosis sorted out and needed several months for my body to get back to normal functioning. It took time to sort out insulin doses and for doctors to decide how they wanted to manage my condition or even what kind of diabetes I have. Fortunately I was at uni at the time so didn't have supportive/unsupportive employers etc. to contend with.

Having undiagnosed/poorly treated diabetes can put your at risk of having other problems like decreased immunity or longer recovery time to get over infections etc. It could be that factors like these are complicating your employee's situation and may contribute to his/her need for 3-4 weeks off. I doubt a doctor would sign someone off for diabetes unless they had good reason.

Other people commenting on here may have had a swift diagnosis or may not have suffered too much with symptoms before diagnosis so the suggestion that people don't need time off for a diabetes diagnosis is not generalisable to all people. Also your employee may have other health conditions that impact on diabetes and vice versa so it's important that we don't generalise here.

In terms of how you can help your employee and what to expect, things my employers have done that have been supportive are......

- Being understanding about my need to eat during work. I don't know what kind of work you do but for example if your employee needs to eat a biscuit during a meeting or eat some sweets while discussing something with you - it helps to just let them get on and do this without commenting etc.

- allowing me to go to Dr's appointments and make up the work time after hours or rearrange my shifts etc.

- be generally supportive but not make a big deal of the diabetes.

My employers have always generally treated me well so I have been prepared to run the extra mile and put in extra time and effort way above the call of duty for them.
 
I work part-time and my employer has just told me that ,as from now, he intends to deduct from my wages any amount of time I may use in order to carry out blood tests. injections or eating something to bring my blood/sugar levels back to normal (if hypo).He says that I shouldn't expect to be paid "while not working". I usually only take 4-5 mins (max)to do these in any 4 hour period.

I have worked for this employer for several years and this has never come up before. He says that he would otherwise be discriminating against other employees who will also have wages deducted for time spent smoking off the premises.I HAVE to carry out tests etc for my health's sake.

I assume he's legally entitled to do this if he so wishes but i feel this is a petty act not worthy of a, hitherto, reasonable and fair employer. I'd be glad to hear what anyone else thinks.
 
I think thats shocking, I dont know the laws etc but plenty of others on here do and someone will be along with info shortly that will help you
 
Actually I think your employer is breaking the law he should make reasonable adjustments to enable you to carry out your duties. Also its a health and safety issue if you have a hypo, your employer might not like it but he also has a duty of care this is enshrined in many laws. However you might have to be make the time up if this is possible in your job. But remember I am not a solicitor just a lay man who isnt totally stupid who has checked up on this sort thing recently.

If you are a union member I would urge you to contact your union if you don't maybe consider joining one. Failing that if your employer continues to be unreasonable maybe you can escalate it over the head of your line manager to HR or there manager if this is applicable. If none of these options is available to you I'd suggest finding a good solicitor who specialises in employment law preferably someone with experience of disability discrimination cases.

If you need to find a good solicitor I'd recommend using the law society website in order to find or to at least verify the details of your solicitor http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/ . Many solicitors will offer a free consultation session and maybe even take your case on a no win no fee basis. But again I would urge if you take this route to find a good solicitor with knowledge and experience of employment law and disability discrimination law rather than just taking the advice of someone without the experience as its a free consultation session or they do no win no fee.
 
veldah that's disgusting but you'll be pleased to hear that the law is on YOUR side.

Take it from FordPrefect who is absolutely right. I once worked for a company that tried something very similar with me, which ended up costing them rather a lot of money. :mrgreen:
 
The Disability Discrimination Act applies here with its full ferocity. The employer must make reasonable adjustments to cater for the poster's disability (and diabetes is specifically mentioned in the act as a disability).

It is worth the employer noting that if discrimination is so much as alleged to an Employment Tribunal, the normal £55,000 limit on compensation awards does not apply. There is no limit to the compensation that can be awarded for discrimination and as current government policy is to never use a hammer to crack a nut when an industrial press does just as good a job, tribunals are encouraged to make 6 figure payouts.

IanS
 
I wish i had you as my boss.

When i was told i am type 2 mine made life as hard as he could trying to make me leave, i have been told to my face "When i come to work i should leave all my problems including medical ones at home".

I have never had any time off sick because of diabetes, ok i have felt ruff a few days, and and have started hypos when at work, but i carry food and glucose tabs so i cope with it.
The only time i have of work is days when i have important appointments like having my eyes photo done.

I have so far used holliday days for doctor and hospital appointments but im still told "The company does not like drivers taking odd days off."

Oh by the way you dont need any drivers do you, lol.

Graham1441 :twisted: :twisted:
 
Many thanks to everyone who took time to reply to my question and for your very supportive comments and suggestions........ I'm going to give them all further thought. Talking of thoughts.......I wonder how many employers would whistle a different tune if they suddenly became diabetic?????
Thanks everyone
 
Graham1441 said:
When i was told i am type 2 mine made life as hard as he could trying to make me leave, i have been told to my face "When i come to work i should leave all my problems including medical ones at home".

I have never had any time off sick because of diabetes, ok i have felt ruff a few days, and and have started hypos when at work, but i carry food and glucose tabs so i cope with it.
The only time i have of work is days when i have important appointments like having my eyes photo done.

I have so far used holliday days for doctor and hospital appointments but im still told "The company does not like drivers taking odd days off."
Click to expand...
Graham your employer's attitude and behaviour are not only outrageous and unacceptable, but against the law. Unfortunately by tolerating or ignoring it you are making life difficult for yourself (and others) and reinforcing his opinion that he's doing nothing wrong.

It is partly for employers like this that the DDA was established, and it works just fine if people take the trouble to avail themselves of the protection it offers. You have a responsibility to pull your employer up on this.
 
kegstore said:
Graham1441 said:
When i was told i am type 2 mine made life as hard as he could trying to make me leave, i have been told to my face "When i come to work i should leave all my problems including medical ones at home".

I have never had any time off sick because of diabetes, ok i have felt ruff a few days, and and have started hypos when at work, but i carry food and glucose tabs so i cope with it.
The only time i have of work is days when i have important appointments like having my eyes photo done.

I have so far used holliday days for doctor and hospital appointments but im still told "The company does not like drivers taking odd days off."
Click to expand...
Graham your employer's attitude and behaviour are not only outrageous and unacceptable, but against the law. Unfortunately by tolerating or ignoring it you are making life difficult for yourself (and others) and reinforcing his opinion that he's doing nothing wrong.

It is partly for employers like this that the DDA was established, and it works just fine if people take the trouble to avail themselves of the protection it offers. You have a responsibility to pull your employer up on this.
Click to expand...

The way things are he would just show me the door and how much would i get?, I have eight years untill i`m 65 so not a lot of chance of working again, with no money what would i have to look forward to.
I just give up, no law never worked for me, I will just keep taking my tablets including anti-depresents, and try to get to 65.
I did apply for another job and was told by the transport manager "Oh no he wont want anyone who is always taking time of with diabetes", what chance do I have.

Graham1441 :twisted: :twisted:
 
Graham1441 said:
The way things are he would just show me the door and how much would i get?, I have eight years untill i`m 65 so not a lot of chance of working again, with no money what would i have to look forward to.
I just give up, no law never worked for me, I will just keep taking my tablets including anti-depresents, and try to get to 65.
I did apply for another job and was told by the transport manager "Oh no he wont want anyone who is always taking time of with diabetes", what chance do I have.
Click to expand...
A lot of money. If he did show you the door, you can take him to tribunal and from what you say, you have a cast-iron case. If any prospective employer acts as you say, you can also take them to tribunal with similar rights, despite not even being their employee!

The DDA DOES work and as IanS mentioned in his post, tribunals are EXTREMELY generous with their payouts. For what I considered was probably a relatively minor infraction of the terms of the DDA, I was awarded a not inconsiderable sum of money that allowed me to pay off my mortgage, and still have plenty left over, certainly enough to live on quite comfortably.

I would recommend talking to CAB, it's free, confidential and they can assist you with every step of the process if you decide to take things further. Worth thinking about.
 
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