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Refusing to visit occupational health

Victoria

Hi everyone!

We have an employee who returned from maternity leave in June this year, she came back to work with reduced hours (9:15am-16:00pm) and on a four day week basis. Since returning to the office the employee seems to have a different issue nearly every week meaning she needs to work from home or is sick. Every illness is a mystery and needs numerous hospital appointments and it never gets resolved by the doctor (always ongoing). 

Recently the employee hurt her knee falling over (out of work) and the employee has purchased a leg brace as the NHS refused to issue one - we also provide private health care with BUPA and they did not give one. As an employer we have been as flexible as possible in allowing working from home for two weeks, two physio appointments a week during work time and doctors appointments. But the leg has been causing issue's for a month now so we have requested the employee visit occupational health.

This is partly because we want to see if their are any recommendations by the doctor and partly because we are worried their are underlying issues with the employee. We are worried that all of these problems are a cry for attention. 

The employee is refusing to visit occupation health because she doesn't feel it is necessary. Please can I have some advice on options for our next move?

We value the employee but the situation is becoming increasingly difficult for her line manager and taking up a lot of time. 

Thank you

Victoria!

Parents
  • Is she contractually obliged to attend an OH appointment? If not, then you can only go off the information you have and follow your absence procedure. Have you explained that it is a supportive measure and that she will have the opportunity to see the report before you do? Although she doesn't see it as necessary, have you asked if she has any other worries about attending an OH appointment?

    At the moment you only know that she has sporadic absences related to a number of different things? I would just follow your procedure and remind her that you can only use the information you have and decisions will be made on the information to hand (plus a reminder that the OH is a supportive measure).

    Would she perhaps be open to you requesting a GP report?
  • in reply to Jolene
    Hi Jolene,

    No - this is a SME and had no HR department prior to my joining, the contractual changes regarding occupation health were bought in at the beginning of this year. The employee did not accept the changes to her contract.

    We have explained all the benefits of occupation health, we have provided a fact sheet and proposed it in an extremely positive light. She has explicitly stated that she does not feel it is necessary and will not provide a GP report.
  • in reply to Victoria

    Hi Victoria

    When this type of situation arises there are limits to what a company can be reasonably expected to do, before it has to take a decision on how it will rectify the situation.

    The preferred solution is usually to work with the person to help them address and solve a problem. However when people refuse to accept the help that is offered or, worse, refuse to recognise that there is a problem there is little that you can do to find a joint solution.

    It's possibly time for someone she trusts to sit down and explain the realities of the situation.

    • You are a company that needs work to be done for it to continue to operate
    • Her absences are now at a level that cannot continue and a solution must be found
    • You would prefer to find the solution with her, and would like specialist advice on the prognosis for her (as yet unclear) medical condition(s),
    • Hopefully, this will help you to accomodate her medical problem and correct the situation in the interests of everyone

    If she responds posiively, all well and good. If she dosn't the fallback solution is that she must be told 

    • that with or without specialist advice you will need to act,
    • that it is better to act with this advice than without it
    • that if you cannot get the advice, because she refuses to cooperate, you will make a decision without it

    Sometimes this will help focus minds and the situation can be moved foreward positively. If she remains resistant to cooperating, you must nonethless proceed with making a decision about how to put an end to the problem (which could involve dismissal)

    Sorry to rain a little on your parade, but you need to assess if you have yet reached this stage, and then move forward

  • in reply to Victoria
    An employee cannot refuse to accept new terms and conditions if they stay in the employ of the company. Working under protest is not a legal concept. All you can do is resign and claim constructive dismissal, and the change would have to be a major breach of the employment contract for yan individual to succeed..

    You do not have to put every expected duty of an employee in their contract. A reasonable request, cannot be reasonably refused. And if it was in their contract you can hardly 'make' someone visit OH.
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  • in reply to Victoria
    An employee cannot refuse to accept new terms and conditions if they stay in the employ of the company. Working under protest is not a legal concept. All you can do is resign and claim constructive dismissal, and the change would have to be a major breach of the employment contract for yan individual to succeed..

    You do not have to put every expected duty of an employee in their contract. A reasonable request, cannot be reasonably refused. And if it was in their contract you can hardly 'make' someone visit OH.
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