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At Work With MS Questions you may have

  • What happens to my job when I reach the end of one year off sick?
  • How do you retire due to ill health?
  • How can I organise returning to work flexibly?
  • Is it better to go back to work earlier and take six months to return to full capacity or stay at home longer and wait for more improvement?

There are numerous questions that you may have and the answer to many of these depends on your employer's policies and the relationship you have with your employer. The key is maintaining contact with the relevant person at work rather than just sending the required sick notes. Keeping people informed will allow dialogue and negotiation to find the best solution for everyone.

"I have found it is essential to open the lines of communication with your manager to talk about what you can do, so there is not just an assumption about the things you can't manage."

Your employer may have a return to work policy that includes a phased return to work programme, usually over a set time scale. However, if this is not suitable for you discuss it with your employer or Disability Employment Advisor from Jobcentre Plus. A return to work policy that is not appropriate for your condition could be challenged under the DDA. Sometimes it may be better to take a few days or weeks off, or alternatively, a few days a month for a period of time.

When there is a time of change, either in symptoms or how you manage them, this may require further or different adjustments, and can be a time of renegotiation. Change in management within an organisation can be a difficult time if the new manager does not fully understand adjustments that have been made. It is best to take action early and contact the Disability Employment Advisor or other support rather than allow problems to escalate, when communication could become more difficult. Problems can appear too big to resolve when you are in the middle of things; sometimes talking things through can help to break down the problems into more manageable pieces.

Next page - Balancing work and life