Time off sick with Crohn's Disease

[mattw12345]

Good morning,

I had a flare up with my Crohn's a few weeks ago which meant I had just under 2 weeks off work. My sickness record is generally very good, and I'm worried about how this will affect it and how it may look on a reference. Does anyone know if there is special dispensation when it comes to chronic diseases and whether I can request this can be left off my general sickness recored or with some sort of addendum.

If anyone knows anything about this or could advise that would be really appreciated.

Thanks

 

[dowie]

What employers can say in a reference - Job references - Acas

What employers can and cannot say in a job reference, and when references can be discriminatory.

www.acas.org.uk

A detailed reference can also include someone's sickness or absence record. However, an employer must follow discrimination law. The reference should not include any absences related to:

• disability
• parental rights – for example, maternity or paternity leave

Now Crohn's *can* be treated as a disability if it meets some conditions re: having a long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal activities. In which case the absences related to flareups shouldn't be included in a reference. I think HR would typically err on the side of caution regardless if you mention disability and were to request this when leaving the company.

Make sure HR know you have it too at the moment (like obvs you've reported the reason for your absence but separate to that do they know - don't assume they'll have noted it from a sick note for this one instance) so they don't start flagging up your sick days internally when they relate to Crohn's.

Also references often can just be confirmation of your job title and dates you worked there so it wouldn't be an issue anyway.

 

[mid_gen]

I've never seen a reference in the UK that went beyond "X worked in the role of Y between these days".

The reference I got from my job in Germany was two pages of glowing praise from my old boss. Still get that one out for applications even though it was a while back!

 

[D-Ranged]

I've never seen a reference in the UK that went beyond "X worked in the role of Y between these days".

The reference I got from my job in Germany was two pages of glowing praise from my old boss. Still get that one out for applications even though it was a while back!

This.

Also, If I ever need a reference, I use people in the company that I get on well with, luckily that was usually my boss anyway!

 

[dirtychinchilla]

Good morning,

I had a flare up with my Crohn's a few weeks ago which meant I had just under 2 weeks off work. My sickness record is generally very good, and I'm worried about how this will affect it and how it may look on a reference. Does anyone know if there is special dispensation when it comes to chronic diseases and whether I can request this can be left off my general sickness recored or with some sort of addendum.

If anyone knows anything about this or could advise that would be really appreciated.

Thanks

I have had many weeks of for crohn’s or my back. It’s never been a problem at all, although my work is generally pretty chilled. I’m a professional in an engineering environment in case that helps