Dispute with occupational health
I don't want to go into too many details but I'm asking for advice how to deal with my employer. They've known about my pregnancy since very early and have been very supportive about time off for appointments and sickness.
However, at work I always seem to be stuck with the smallest room/office which has no window and the most uncomfortable chair known to humanity. My PGP hasn't been too bad this time round, but as I'm progressing (now 26w) I'm finding it more painful. I've asked 3 my manager 3x at work for a new chair - a change of room is not possible due to staffing reasons. All the chairs they've found have been just as bad if not worse.
Honestly by Monday night by back is in absolute agony.
At this point I've got 2 options as I see it - go above my manager to their boss and complain. Or essentially tell them I'm working from home indefinitely because I cannot be guaranteed a comfortable environment at work.
How would you approach this tactfully?
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I was in a similar situation when I was pregnant with my first. It was a nice office with glazing, but I asked for a fitness ball to sit on instead of a regular office chair. They gave me some kind of inflatable cushion, which I refused to use, and I didn’t push it any further. I just worked from home more and told them it was due to traffic or a physio appointment for my PGP, etc. So basically, I just increased my WFH on my own, and there was nothing they could do about it. I just wish I hadn’t had to deal with all that extra, unnecessary stress in my third trimester.
I work in a school and the first thing they did was give me a new chair for my back. Luckily, they already had one otherwise they were ready to purchase one for me.
It’s all a part of my risk assessment at work
However, my back is quite bad at the moment I went into work today and they sent me home .
Get signed off to work from home until you go on mat leave... I've done this myself.
They should do a pregnancy risk assessment. Also if you are desk based you should have had a DSE assessment to check suitability of chair/ desk/ environment etc x
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