Hi, just popping in.
Sorry to hear about your job disappointment
@Milky1
I can appreciate how frustrating it must be, especially when you thought you had it in the bag.
My understanding of this is secondhand (my husband works on the railway) and I cannot say whether this applies to any of the other franchises. But I can confirm that the company that employs him does not allow insulin users to hold safety critical roles. This is an absolute, non-negotiable condition of employment. A requirement of the company’s insurance, operation and health and safety.
Safety critical roles come in a range of different types. Train drivers, guards, other roles such as the one you applied for. There are stringent standards applied, including medical checks, regular physicals, drug testing, eye tests, and so on. There is a (long) list of drugs that safety critical staff cannot take while doing the job. Insulin is on that list. The list also includes alcohol (staff cannot have any alcohol in their bloodstream when in uniform or on railway property, at risk of instant dismissal) and most cough medicines are forbidden, amongst many more rules and regs. Other health conditions are also listed, from some heart conditions and epilepsy to glaucoma and even fatigue. Yes, a safety critical staff member turning up to a shift ‘unrested’ would be subject to having the book thrown at them, if they dropped the ball in any way during that shift.
Imagine, for a moment, if a staff member had an accident while subject to a condition that increased such risk. Imagine if members of the public were injured as a result. The friends and family of the victims would be furious and sue the pants off the company who had irresponsibly allowed the situation to develop. The company would be subject to massive government fines.
Unfortunately, the decision won’t have been about whether you have hypos. It will have been based on an absolute rule which they cannot bend for fear of invalidating their insurance and duty of care to their passengers.
Consequently, I would suggest that the error was in offering you the job in the first place, not in withdrawing the offer when they recognised the offer was invalid.