Dignity Funerals failed to make reasonable adjustments for funeral director Janie Crampshee, the tribunal found, after she requested a phased return to work following cancer treatment.
Occupational health representatives recommended that Crampshee work reduced hours, avoid heavy lifting and not work on-call.
However, the tribunal heard that managers pressured Crampshee to provide a timeline for her recovery and full return to work; they later dismissed her.
“The recent research about returning to work following cancer undertaken by the Institute for Employment Studies (IES) and [the training provider] Working With Cancer indicated that a successful return-to-work is possible, if managed and implemented correctly,” Zofia Bajorek, senior research fellow at research institute the IES, told HR magazine.
“Employers should clearly communicate what employee benefits are on offer to support people back to work and, crucially, to remain in work. They should also consult with employees to determine whether there are any further practices that could be implemented.”
Read more: How HR can help inform guidance to support employees who have cancer
Crampshee worked as a funeral director at Aberdeen Funeral Directors from 2014. While she was on a two-year period of sick leave to receive treatment for cancer, the funeral home was acquired by Dignity Funerals.
In 2017, Crampshee was told that she could make a phased return to work. She and her manager agreed that she would return to work from January 2018, initially three days per week, working three hours per shift.
They also agreed that Crampshee would not work on-call, and that she would not do any heavy lifting.
The tribunal noted that the timeline of this was not agreed, and that an occupational health report was not initially sought.
Crampshee increased her hours gradually to 15 hours per week in March.
It was not until April that she was provided an occupational health assessment, which found that she was legally disabled, and would be fit to return to work with adjustments such as a phased return and amended duty.
In the occupational health report, the company’s HR advisor indicated that Crampshee’s phased return to work was causing “an operational and financial problem for the business”.
In May, however, Crampshee was signed off on a period of long-term absence, after her GP found that she was stressed due to a dispute with management about her wages.
She remained off work until October 2018, when she was dismissed.
While on sick leave, the tribunal heard that Crampshee was called into meetings in which management and HR pressured her to provide a timeline and end date for her phased return to work.
The tribunal suggested this was an unreasonable request, given the nature of Crampshee’s disability.
Occupational health continued to reiterate that Crampshee would need to make a phased return to work, building up to full-time hours. It also recommended that the dispute over her pay be resolved, to prevent her stress impacting her performance.
In a meeting in early October, managers offered Crampshee three options: a full-time funeral director role, employment as a funeral service administrator with a salary of £15,925 or termination of employment on the grounds of capability.
Crampshee refused the offer of alternative employment as she “could not live on the reduced salary”, which was around £9,000 lower than her current salary.
She was later dismissed on capability grounds.
The tribunal ruled that Crampshee was unfairly dismissed, and that the reason for her dismissal was due to her disability. This amounted to disability discrimination, Judge Hosie ruled, and a failure to make reasonable adjustments.
Crampshee was awarded £60,940.62 in compensation, although this is set for another hearing to review.
Read more: Training is crucial to supporting employees with cancer
Employers should support employees with cancer on a case by case basis, according to Nicky Lyle, group HR director at travel tour operator Hotelplan UK.
Speaking to HR magazine, she said: “Dealing with cancer and undergoing treatment is different for each and every person, so the first thing an employer can do is to take the time to understand what that individual really needs.
“The employee should feel that their employer is approaching the situation with positive intent rather than as a capability process, to rebuild their confidence.
“Having really clear guidelines and processes in place will remove any ambiguity and stress the employee may have about their pay, sick days and return to work options.”
HR and line managers should be equipped with the confidence to have difficult conversations, Bajorek added.
She continued: “Line managers and HR should be provided with coaching about how to support employees with cancer (and other long-term health conditions at work).
“Line managers need to be given appropriate support to line manage employees with cancer effectively, and they too should have access to EAP and HR support if needed.
“Research has shown that employees with cancer can benefit from the therapeutic aspects of work, and the sense of normality that a return to work can bring them, but the process needs to be managed carefully and sensitively, with the use of good work and good management principles.”
