I have worked for a company for over 14 years. I’ve had a kidney transplant, prior to which I had to take time off work for dialysis. The occupational therapist said I was unable to return to work, but I had every intention of going back after a convalescence period. Can they just sack me?
No. Where someone has a physical or mental impairment which has a “substantial and long-term adverse effect” on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities the employer (if he or she has more than 15 employees) must consider reasonable changes to that person’s employment arrangements. An employment tribunal might rule, however, that your employer acted fairly in sacking you if you were taking significantly more time off than other employees and had effectively become incapable of doing your job.