Hello .I had a heart attack a few years ago and have worked for Land Rover for 18yrs .I have been put on a job that I have to race to keep up with that has caused me to panic and have heart flutters that caused me to spend 4 hrs in hospital .I have been told that if I refuse the job I will go through procedure which involves going from a stage 1 to stage 5 resulting in the sack could you please tell me where I stand .Many thanks
Hello and thank you for your question, which I will be happy to assist you with. Please let me know what is your specific question about this?
Hi I don't know if you saw the above but I had a heart attack a few yrs ago and am on a job that is causing heart flutters but they tell me to do it or go through stages resulting in a possible sacking
OK. What is it that you would like to know ?
I was just wondering if you had any specific you wanted me to answer so that I can direct my advice more appropriately?
Yes ..If they try to put me through procedure for not taking a job that causes me to have chest pains do I have any legal rights.
I'd told them before I went on the job that having 70% of my heart working and the rest scar tissue would restrict me as I have to keep up with a fast moving track.
Hello again. You will have certain rights. First of all it is important to establish whether your condition could be classified as a disability in law.
Disability can have a broad meaning and there is no single list of conditions that amount to a disability under law. Instead, to establish whether a person is disabled for legal purposes, they need to establish whether they meet the definition of ‘disability’ as laid down in law.
Disability is one of the protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010 (“EA”) and is defined as a “physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.
I will break down this definition so that you get a better idea of the requirements necessary for a condition to amount to a disability:
If a person meets the above criteria, they would be classified as being disabled in law and would have automatic protection against discrimination. In particular, that means that they must not be treated less favourably because of their disability. In addition, their employer would have a duty to make reasonable adjustments if the employee is likely to be placed at a substantial disadvantage when compared to non-disabled employees. What amounts to ‘reasonable adjustments’ can have a wide interpretation and often depends on the individual circumstances. In this case you may certainly argue that a reasonable adjustment would be to move you to a position that does not have such an adverse effect on your condition.
Even if you are not classified as disabled, your employer would have a duty under health and safety regulations to ensure your health and wellbeing in the workplace. Therefore, that is a additional argument you can raise to remind them that they have a duty towards you.
In terms of getting your voice heard - if necessary you may raise a formal grievance about this. If this is not successful in resolving matters, then you may consider going as far as tribunal action if necessary.