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occupational health

Started by dfl, 13-01-22, 10:52PM

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horatiocain

Always keep OH involved, you have nothing to lose.

Their recommendations around work could be a pivotal piece of evidence should they dismiss you some time down the line.

Musculoskeletal conditions do not always heal  and if they do they don't always heal fully or quickly, if you need physio this will take your condition into the years of suffering time scale, which is when you get the protections of a disability under the 2010 equality act  which makes it a requirement for Tesco to make adjustments.
And because Tesco is so big there are always adjustments to keep someone in  job  maybe not their original roles  but as a GA.

If you've suffered for 12 months or more and had to use medication then you'd likely be deemed disabled.

OH can make a judgement based recommendation that you're disabled  but ultimately that's a legal question not a medical one.

Redshoes

You can look at recommendations. Come up with a plan and then go back to oh. It is always worth getting them involved regardless.
If a job is offered to you that you don't want you can refuse. The shift pattern and job role both need to be considered. They should not make a job for you but the expectation is that with a company our - .
size a role should be found.
There are however very limited light duty roles. Checkouts always used to be the default but it's not fully light duties as heavy items need to be scanned.
If you are wanting a job at the PFS for example, but the PFS is over hours and nobody is wanting to move out they need to look at the big picture. It's not adding hours to store total but may just make a different dept over hours. If your store is close to hours and moving you out your dept puts that dept under hours and the one you go into over hours that is still something that can happen but it might take a bit move work to land as it could mean a three or four way move. Nobody else can be made to move to accommodate you but they can be asked.

dfl

I've been offered c & c as permanent role so far, but changing shift days, was monday to friday, being offered now sun and wed as days off, still mulling it over, o.h. referal has been made but no 1st appointment yet
DFL

lackofinterest

i would turn it down. surely you need 2 days off together especially after being ill

lucgeo

Sign nowt...if you're thinking of taking it, ask for a four week trial to see if it's compatible with your recovery first. If you're struggling or find it's not suitable you can go back to them any time during the four week trial. In which time your OH appointment should have come through.

I always found a day off mid week was more beneficial, for various appointments, shopping or just going out and about, as not too busy, especially with some places not open weekends. 

If they're offering you the same shift hours as you do now, then it may prove beneficial to you, to show willing by meeting them halfway here.
If they're offering you shifts that are incomparable to what you do now, then I'd be wary of accepting them!
Again I say ....SIGN NOTHING!!
Live for today. Learn from yesterday.

dfl

Cheers lucgeo and lackofinterest
DFL

horatiocain

I wouldn't accept anything before the OH report.

And they can move other people hours to accommodate a reasonable adjustment it isn't fair to the other people in one regard but they don't have a disability to co sister so it is in a other, equality doesn't mean treating everyone the same  it means everyone having the same opportunities.

lucgeo

They cannot move other peoples hours to accommodate  ???

They can ask, but I certainly would not advise anyone to allow their hours to be moved to accommodate another! The onus is on Tesco to accommodate, not shift their workforce round!

Anyone pressurised to move their hours to be given to another, even only partly, is suffering a detriment and should refuse out right! Any continuing insistence should be grievanced under harassment and bullying!!
Live for today. Learn from yesterday.

Villager No.6

They absolutely cannot move anyones hours without consent to accommodate another but what they can/will and do do (certainly in my store at least) is DFL keeps his original hours and when he turns up for his shift they tell the c&c driver "you're out on a route today" and get DFL to cover the c&c driver.
Any protestations by c&c driver will be met with "you're a driver on drivers money doing the same hours on the same day, now get delivering".

horatiocain

Wow seems some people need to read up a little, our hours are all movable unless they're set for specific reasons, that's why Tesco have a moving people around the business policy.
It's entirely legal and happens quite often, your contract is not for specific hours of specific days, but rather a specified number of hours per week within your availability window, your shifts are never guaranteed, only expected.
If you refuse there becomes a whole legal set of hoops to jump through but they certainly can be changed, as can duties performed.

Remember your just a colleague contracted on a number of hours, the company Alan freely move you to another department if they choose. Our contracts are specifically wooly in this area, for just this reason, and to make a reasonable adjustment for a protected colleague certainly meets the bar for justification from an employer to change hours.

They cannot reduce your hours but they most definitely can change them.
Unless it specifies in your contract what hours on what days you work then it is always open for change and unless something is happening in your store specifically the contract will just state hours per week.

All union reps get a handbook on changing hours, as it's quite complex.

oldfashionedplayer

So what your saying is, if they try to move people out, they should have updated their availability window so they can't, but also if they try to, they should start complaining about their role and their duties now too, that they've been put it into something they struggle to do, more so on a forced order and start going down the OH route too for issues on mental stability perhaps? And get moved back into said department...

If they can play the cards due to the contracts as you say, I guess colleagues could also start to play the cards too and have "issues" or start to "struggle" and put the blame on forced movement 🤷‍♂️

horatiocain

That's the problem, you're absolutely right, it's a 2 way street, just like flexibility  Tesco don't like it when staff ask for flexibility in their work but demand it from the colleagues.
I've worked with Tesco long enough to know just how awfully run this company is.

They don't know their own policies let alone the law, the number of time I heard the phrase, 'can't make a job for them' beggars belief  the number of times I heard a manager say why do we have to make adjustments for a colleague is astounding.
And please don't get me started on reasonable belief, I couldn't explain it to then with a dictionary and crayons if world survival depended upon it.

It's meant to be about being reasonable and finding a solution, so finding someone who can and will move to accommodate, but they have a duty towards the disabled employee, but they have to do it without upsetting the staff or they'll all leave, oops forgot they like that  saves them making people illegally redundant like in 2018, where they sacked the stock control teams and hired new ones on shorter contracts.

Everyone hates this company now  there is no loyalty a d there is no reward, so make your work life as easy as possible  the management do

Redshoes

As a business we can't afford to create a job that is not needed. As we are heading through a structure change when things will become tough and hard for many we can't make-up jobs that are not needed.
We can however support those that need it. We can move things about and fit someone into a role that supports them but also has them playing a functional part of the company. We can't afford to pay people to do nothing so the role that is created has to be a reasonable role. We can't give someone a job on the CSD or checkouts during the times the store is closed is an extreme example. If the CSD is running on high hours but so is another area we could move someone to the desk as if we are over hours it just means one area is more over hours than it was but the overall for the store stays the same. The CSD may be reasonably asked to support checkouts during service call or to train up and support the PFS to cover breaks too.

horatiocain

#38
That is the big issue.

People think their role is much more specific that it actually is, a stock controller is expected to do anything within the realm of their department  which includes merchandising, a replenisher can be expected to replenish any area, they do this to create flexibility.

They hire us as GAs so that we don't have specific departments.
A GAs job is extremely varied, one of the few staff who are more limited are drivers  but even the  there is a clause in the contracts that states they can be required to perform the duties of a GA, so when I hear we can't make a job I always called BS.

It's about duties, they already have the job, it's just lazy management.

I know that management would rather dismiss someone and take the Tribunal hearing knowing that head office will settle the case than work hard for disabled colleagues.

Batmanjo

Quote from: Redshoes on 02-02-22, 07:49AM
As a business we can't afford to create a job that is not needed. As we are heading through a structure change when things will become tough and hard for many we can't make-up jobs that are not needed.
We can however support those that need it. We can move things about and fit someone into a role that supports them but also has them playing a functional part of the company. We can't afford to pay people to do nothing so the role that is created has to be a reasonable role. We can't give someone a job on the CSD or checkouts during the times the store is closed is an extreme example. If the CSD is running on high hours but so is another area we could move someone to the desk as if we are over hours it just means one area is more over hours than it was but the overall for the store stays the same. The CSD may be reasonably asked to support checkouts during service call or to train up and support the PFS to cover breaks too.

What a crock of ................. GA's are employed as general assistants with no specific job on their contract and as you say it would be reasonable to ask a GA to do another non specific job such as checkouts, so the facts are they would not be making a job up for somebody just accommodating a company employee to do another job. there has got to be give and take on both sides. Fortunately my contract is specific and they couldn't move me about the store. PS did you know anyone that was working before 2005 would be cover by the legal agreement between the company and the union and would not have to cover the checkouts so there goes your reasonable to unreasonable as a point of LAW. 

grim up north

Can an employee decide when occupational health recommendations apply?

ForCryingOutLoud

No, they are just that, recommendations only.

lucgeo

Totally agree with Batmanjo ....

Always used to really pee me off with this two sided rubbish of can't create a job... then you're a GA expected to support any dept or nearby store if deemed suitable??
All hands, everyone to support and answer checkout calls, no one is ring fenced...can't send anyone to help SC catch up on their routines as nobody trained to do it!!!

As stated, if you joined the company before ?june/july? 2005, you are not required to train on checkouts, and can refuse!
Live for today. Learn from yesterday.

horatiocain

The number of times I heard that phrase became absurd.

They already are the job, your asking for ADJUSTMENTS to their job ROLE.
Trying to explain that to a mamager in Tesco is like teaching rocket science to a chimp, you have no idea if they can understand the words coming out of your mouth, and even if they do there's still chance they'll just make a mess.

dfl

Oh report came through, references condition having improved (sufficient that im back on "my own job"), does highlight i still get some pain on occasions and also highlights repeated heavy lifting as sometimes causing issue as well as on occasion stiff shutters on vans which pull on the stomach to close. In all tho i consider if management can swap out some of my driving shifts then this helps as im doing the heavy lifting a lot less, already have had some of this done and it is helping
DFL

dfl

appears i jumped the gun, runs are getting heavier and affecting my full recovery big time, o.h. report and advice given is not being followed, no adjustments are now being made at all.
DFL

BUY TESLA STOCK

If you tell them you have a health issue it will only be used against you by certain store managers.

horatiocain

So they need to adjust and move you back to light duties to aid your recovery.
They could factor a smaller run but in my experience that's too much work for the manager, more likely they can find you a suitable alternative role.
Be insistent that they stagger your return and eas you back in.

BUY TESLA STOCK

Where's the light duties. Can you see them.   (-*-)

Mark calloway

I asked to be referred to OH but the SM has said no,do an adjustment passport?? Any idea why? Another person, who hasn't got any medical evidence which I have several letters from specialists has got a referral to OH.

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