Some advice please, regarding sickness

[moose123]

Hi everyone

I have been quietly scanning the forums for a few months now on my partners username and thought I'd come on today to finally ask some advice. I am not a postie but my partner is, I come on here to basically get the other side of 'Royal Mail' and back up all his claims about how awful the company actually is - I know it sounds weird but it helps to read that he is not the only one going through crap every day.

I am getting quite worried about him as the job is effecting him quite a lot lately, and it is putting a severe strain on him physically and mentally. He has literally no energy and is suffering from what I think is building up to be severe depression/anxiety and stress. His shoulders and knees keep seizing up so on days off he is unable to physically do much even if he wanted to.

He is quite a shy person anyway, so dealing with the hustle and bustle in the office has been a challenge for him, but he is finding it difficult to talk to people now and not happy with certain comments being made to him (although I imagine they are only joking he is just not up to it.) He has also been threatened with suspension 2 times in the last few months for 1) refusing to do overtime because they NEVER PAY HIM and 2) bringing a bag of mail back that he agreed ONLY to do if he had the time, because he refuses to now do overtime because of non payment.

I was just wondering how he would go about going on the sick for depression and sickness and if he would get any sort of sick pay? He has been there for nearly 3 years.

I keep advising him to go to the doctors but he doesn't believe me that they will take him seriously about feeling so down and stressed, so he doesn't see the point, but reading on the forum I have seen a couple of other people have the same feelings so this has given me some hope. I would like him to fee he has a choice in getting better.


Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[P739]

Sadly this story could be from any office in the land I personally have experienced the same but unlike your partner I give as good as I get and stand my ground..But I know of guys that can't tell them to speak to their CWU Rep but don't hesitate to get the Doctor involved it will only get worse...I literally seen guys snap because of the hassle and pressure over the years Sadly this all to frequent in Royal Mail 2014..It's a culture of sink or swim sadly hope they get through it .

[Brain Fury]

I would urge your partner to go to the doctors. There is no reason why they won't take him seriously and be able to help. Some years ago I suffered from depression but thought I could get through it on my own. There is a saying that depression affects strong people more because they refuse help and think they can just "pull themselves together" but often they can't.
Eventually it became too much for me and I had a breakdown and then I had to go to the doctors. There's no doubt i felt a lot worse because I didn't deal with it early. I was off work for 5 weeks. Assuming your partner is off work for more than 7 days and gets a certificate then he will definitely get sick pay.

[baldrick]

Your partner really does need to speak to his GP about his problems. It does sound like he is suffering from clinical depression which is a serious debilitating illness and needs to be treated as soon as possible, or it will only get worse.
His GP will take him seriously if he is open about his feelings and why he is feeling like that. It might be better for you to accompany him to ensure he does tell the GP everything, and to tell the GP how you think he has been as men often don't like talking about things like this thinking they might be thought of as 'weak'.
He will probably be prescribed anti-depressant medication which takes a few weeks to take effect, and if the GP thinks that the depression is caused by what is happening at work he/she will sign him off. Your partner should get full sick pay for 6 months then half pay for a further 6 months, as long as he has not had any time off sick in the last 12 months.
Once the medication takes effect he might feel that he is well enough to return to work, but should not do so unless his GP thinks he is able to do so.
He is likely to get telephone calls and possibly visits from his manager to pressure him to return to work, and referral to ATOS who will also possibly try to get him to return to work. But he shouldn't unless his GP thinks he is able.
It will be be difficult for him, but depression is a very real and serious illness and can lead to suicide, so your husband needs to take care of himself. And you need to make sure that he gets the help and treatment he needs.
I hope you both get the help you need. Best Wishes to you.

[moose123]

Thanks for the advice. I have had a talk to him and he's going to see how he is the next few days, and book an appointment.

He has had previous experiences where the doctor has not taken him seriously so there is a stigma attached to going, but I will go with him this time.

Does anyone know what the sick pay is if he was to go on the sick?

[baldrick]

As your husband has worked for RM for over 12 months and is presumably established, he would get full pay for six months, then half pay for the next six months. After 12 months he wouldn't get anything.
I'm sorry to hear that a GP didn't take your husband's problems seriously before. The vast majority of GPs would understand depression and be able to help. If your GP practice has more than one GP it would probably be better to ask to see a different GP. It is good that you are going with him, as you can make sure that the GP understands how badly your husband is affected, and that he/she takes it seriously.
I hope you and your husband can get the help he needs, and wish you both all the best.

[krussel]

I think most people in this job have at some point felt that the task of delivery will just become too much to physically cope with. It does not help that managers are not trained to deal with depression or look for the signs of a problem. They simply want the work out of the door asap.
Although on the surface a posties life can look pretty straightforward there is a real element of stress involved if your having issues and become faced with a really heavy day.

Perhaps sit down with your husband and have a look at some of the past threads on here. He will associate his daily problems with many who frequent this site, his really not alone.

The GP is a really good idea especially if you go with him and offer support. We all need a little help at some point in our lives.

Wish you both the very best.