Every so often, someone starts with the company who you immediately know is going to cause you many headaches during their time at the company.
It’s been a while since we found a new one, but we definitely have such a person now.
Our new pregnant employee has been the cause of some concern, after our occupational health nurse ‘hinted’ that we should speak to her about a couple of things.
We didn’t know what these were, but they have turned out to be that she suffers from asthma, and suffered a broken back a couple of years ago.
This wouldn’t be ideal for anyone, but for someone working in an environment where there are some chemicals in use, and where manual handling is required, this is something of an issue for us.
However, we in HR are being careful not to overreact and to get all the facts in place before we decide how best to handle the situation in the long-term.
The same cannot be said for her manager. Upon hearing the news about her broken back, his first response was to label her a hypochondriac.
Now, I’m all for using that term in relation to people who call in regularly with minor sniffles, but for someone who has had a broken back and spent the best part of 6 months bed-ridden in a back brace… let’s just say I was somewhat incredulous when that word left his mouth.
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