I honestly don’t know if this is normal or if it’s as messed up as it feels.
I have a long-term health condition (disability). When it flares up, I sometimes get more tired ,weather, allergies, stress, being unwell can all make it worse. Out of transparency I told my managers when this happened.
Instead of supporting me, they: • wrote it down as me “refusing to work,” • gave me poor performance feedback, • told me not to say I’m tired, • extended my probation, • changed me from 4 days to 5 days, • moved me to another location, • and gave me a “support plan” that was basically punishment. And monitoring my toilet time…😰
Meanwhile, other colleagues can say they’re tired or unwell all the time and nothing happens. One manager even said in a meeting: “If your health condition is an issue, then you’re not suitable for the role.”
Now my health has collapsed, I’m signed off sick, and I’m honestly terrified of going back , not just to this company but to the whole industry.
Is this how workplaces really treat people? Because I feel broken and worthless after this.🥲
Update:
Some extra context for those asking:
• I started 2024 August on a 6-month probation (contract said max +3 months). My first review in September was really positive. By Jan 2025 probation should’ve ended, but I never got any written notice so I assumed that was it.
• Then in March they suddenly pulled me into a third review, gave loads of unfair negative feedback and said they’d extend probation another month.
The work environment was rough: constant back-to-back heavy shifts, often over 5–6 hours with no break, freezing/dirty rooms (they only put in air con this year), kids always sick so I kept catching stuff too. My asthma, which had been stable, started getting worse. I’d asked for flexible days off, earlier breaks, even to go home when unwell, but management always said “ratios” and refused.
It wasn’t just health either. I raised concerns like snack time being made so “formal” that some kids actually missed out on food (not good for nutrition or their expectations). Management just downgraded that as a “routine concern” instead of treating it as an actual issue. I also flagged my workload being much heavier than others. But they responded with some interesting reasons, like I work long day, and I was not the leader. And weirdly, my photo was not added to the team display, even though colleagues who joined with me, and even after me, had theirs up. And I told one of the managers about this.They promised to change it tomorrow but nothing happened. Hard not to notice when you’re the only ethnic minority in the room.
And here’s the thing: if they were really worried about safety, they should’ve done a proper health assessment for me, not just pile on more pressure. They could’ve actually sat down to discuss it, instead of suddenly dragging me into an unannounced meeting and shouting at me until I ended up in tears.
For the safety concerns about kids:
When I realised my health was going downhill, I went on sick leave and refused to return, even though they kept saying they wanted to “support me back to work”. For me it’s about protecting both my health and the children’s safety.