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Taking time off work for appointments

jessie

jessie

Well-Known Member
Messages
275
Location
Gloucestershire
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi,

I've just been told by my employers, after 7 years of working for them, that I can no longer take time off for doctors appointments etc without taking annual leave or making up the hours before my next salary is due. We are small, friendly (or so I thought) company and I have been more than loyal to them over the years. I feel really hurt and angry by this, I have only been type 1 for 10 months and haven't had many appointments, I only took 1 day off when I was diagnosed where as my doctor recommended 2 weeks. They don't pay sick or I would've gladly taken the time off! At the time I had a text message from my boss to say 'don't worry about taking time off for appointments, don't worry about anything'. Typically I no longer have that message. Also I was hoping to do a DAFNE course or similar, and as I have no holiday left until April this will have to go on hold.

I'm sure she has checked her rights before issuing this new rule, but I am going to speak to ACAS about it (when I can finally get through to them!), just to clarify things. In the meantime does anyone have any advice?

Yours generally f***d off :twisted:

Jessie. x
 
Hi jessie,
I can understand your anger given you were lead to believe that allowances would be made for your diabetes.
I have no knowledge of employment laws to help you but I would advise that you keep calm about the whole issue as you may say or do something you regret. ACAS are the best ones to help you with this problem as they are the specialists.
I am sure there must be provision for diabetes within the Disability laws so keep your chin up, smile sweetly at your employers and wait and see what ACAS says.
Hope this helps,
Catherine.
 
Ah, Catherine, I am trying my best to smile sweetly! I have calmed down a little, I think I have taken this a bit personally, rightly or wrongly. I'll have a word with ACAS as soon as I get out of here.

Thank you. x
 
Hi Jessie

It’s the pits I’m afraid, it’s the employer discretion to whether they do or don’t pay you to attend appointments, the only medical appointments that are covered are anti-natal appointments….

When it came to going on my DAFNE course my manager tried to prevent me from attending due to saying that even though I had holiday entitlement still left, that she wasn’t going to grant me holiday leave to attend!!! My consultant did write a letter telling her that it was medically necessary for me to attend this course etc…

The only thing that you can do is speak to your manager and see if they will at least meet you half way so that you don’t loose all your pay or use up all your holiday entitlement… Point out the long term benefits of the DAFNE course, as the better you can control your diabetes they less time you will have sick of work etc…
 
fortunatly my bosses have been more than generous to me for my appointments, infact i know that they dont report my appointments to the HR department... who i'm sure would have something to say about it. My new boss (excellent boss) has been really good the past few weeks. i've had half a day off work a week for the past 6 weeks and i've got another two half days next week for pump fitting.

I just explained what the appointments were for and how much it ment and he was more than happy to let me take the time off... i dont mind working some extra hours if he wants me to, but he hasn't asked for it.

I was diagnosed whilst employed by my company so they've been involved (so to speak) since the very beginning.

I guess all you can do is talk to them, remind them of your loyalty to the company. It is down to their discretion at the end of the day, unless otherwise stated in your contract of employment (it's worth knowing what that says for these things so you know where you stand).
 
Thanks all, grrrr it's so frustrating! Stu I think you're lucky to have such great employers - if only all could be as understanding. Little things like this can make life so much easier. I will try and pluck up the courage to speak to them about this, or better still get a new job :wink:
 
What a pain for you Jessie
Definitely check out your rights.
I'm very lucky. My employer is more than generous, asking only that I try to make appts early or late, which works for me as I have a 30 mile each way commute and the last thing I need to be doing is doctor-dashing at 1pm! :)
 
My employer is good with time but will only let me finish early if work is slack and thats on a day to day basis so I can't make appointments, if I want time I have to take a half day holiday. As I only get 20 days a year and have to save a week for Christmas it doesn't leave much scope. I'm still deciding what to do about it. No appointments or no annual hoildays :shock: :cry:
 
I have sort of had this problem too. I teach in a college so any time off during term time is a bit of a pain on my students rather than anything else, although I know they love it. I have to go to the endo today so have had to take the day off. My employers are fine with it but if I have to have that dye stuff put in my eyes and can't drive, I have to take tomorrow as annual leave (even though I work in education it is not like schools and we have a leave entitlement every year) which is fair enough I suppose as my boss is arguing that I am not unfit to work, I just can't drive there!
Hope you get it sorted.
 
Sam, those drops affect your eyes the following day?

I'll stop moaning about them now, as my vision is back to normal after about 3 hours!
 
viv1969 said:
Sam, those drops affect your eyes the following day?

I'll stop moaning about them now, as my vision is back to normal after about 3 hours!
Click to expand...
The letter said it would affect my eyes for 24 hours but the endo didn't check my eyes even though the vision in my right one is appalling. He also doesn't want me to get my eyes checked for 3 months til my BG has settled. 3 hours sounds good then :)
 
One place I worked, we had a smashing manager. He believed in gave and take and used to turn a blind eye if I lurked off early from time to time because he knew I often used to turn up early, and I used to visit suppliers and customers and ferry stuff to and from subcontractors in my own time in my own car. Once I dropped an urgently needed spare part off at a customer on the way home and he was most impressed that it was still hot from the machining <G>

When they forced him into early retirement the new manager was a real jobsworth. First thing he did was to haul in everyone who had had more than one sick day in the last three years and give them a verbal warning. Illegal? Yes and he was proud of it. The sick ******* scared the hell out of one of my colleagues who had had breast cancer and made her take holiday days for her chemo visits.

He hauled me over the coals whenever I was late (I had an hour commute) so I stopped doing any favours, I would come in to work, commandeer a company car and drive back to near where I lived during my working hours to do my business visits, he was quite happy with that waste of resources. And when I got to work early I would sit in my car round the corner. He lost scads more than he gained through his attitude. The company has since changed hands about three times and went from being a world leader to an also-ran, I wonder why that could be?

My current boss is such a ******* that he actually accompanies me to my doctor visits (I am self employed <G>)
 
I was fuming the other day. I work part time and have done so in the same place since Adam was a boy. Next week I have to leave a whole QUARTER OF AN HOUR early one day to get to a blood test on time and have had to fill in a leave of absence form. Every single, solitary week I work 1/4 hour overtime PLUS don't know how many extra unpaid hours. I was wild. I must admit I am never refused time off for appointments I was just so angry having to fill in a form. Think I might do it the other way round and bombard them with paperwork for hours I work unpaid. They would be snowed under. Rant over.
 
broads said:
I was fuming the other day. I work part time and have done so in the same place since Adam was a boy. Next week I have to leave a whole QUARTER OF AN HOUR early one day to get to a blood test on time and have had to fill in a leave of absence form. Every single, solitary week I work 1/4 hour overtime PLUS don't know how many extra unpaid hours. I was wild. I must admit I am never refused time off for appointments I was just so angry having to fill in a form. Think I might do it the other way round and bombard them with paperwork for hours I work unpaid. They would be snowed under. Rant over.
Click to expand...

Might be worth starting to look for a new job. It's been my experience not only with a few firms I've worked for but with many suppliers (and not a few I'd had unsuccessful interviews with) that once this type of management takes hold their closure may not be far off
 
Broads that sucks, employers seem to conveniently 'forget' about all of the extra hours their staff put in. I know it seems anal but I have actually started to keep a time sheet on my desk so that whenever I work half and hour late or through my lunch break then I have record of it and it can count towards the time off I may need to take. Play them at their own game!

Jessie.
 
Would play them at their own game but won't. I get so utterly frustrated with the paperwork etc but I only live about 500 steps, on my pedometer, away from my work, I work in a primary school and just love my job SO much, also I am retiring in July. If I were 20 years younger then the powers that be would have a fight on their hands, a big one. As long as the Top Nobs can tick their boxes then no one else matters.
 
Sorry should add that the kids and I get on so well together and that's what matters. When I hear 'Oh yea I understand' or 'Thank you for helping me , I understand it now.' That's my reward, filling in paperwork for 15 mins off for a blood test well.............!
 
broads said:
Sorry should add that the kids and I get on so well together and that's what matters. When I hear 'Oh yea I understand' or 'Thank you for helping me , I understand it now.' That's my reward, filling in paperwork for 15 mins off for a blood test well.............!
Click to expand...

One thing mother misses since we moved was her ex-pupils coming up to her in the street many years later

"Didn't you used to be Mrs Trinkwasser?"
 
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