What to do if…
your manager demands you attend a meeting while you are on medical leave

What to do now

1. Check what you have already given your employer about your absence.
   If you are off sick for more than 7 calendar days, you will usually need a fit note. Make sure HR has the current fit note or any absence form your employer has asked for, and keep your own copy.

2. Send one calm boundary in writing.
   You can write: “I’m currently off sick and not well enough to attend a meeting. Please email me the purpose, agenda, and any documents. Please coordinate through HR while I’m absent, and I’ll respond when I’m able.”

3. Ask what kind of meeting it is.
   Ask them to confirm whether it is:

   • a welfare or keeping-in-touch check-in
   • a return-to-work planning discussion
   • an investigatory meeting
   • a disciplinary hearing
   • a formal grievance meeting

4. Offer a reasonable contact option only if you can manage it.
   Depending on your health, you could suggest written questions by email, one short scheduled call with HR present, or postponing until you are medically able to take part.

5. If it is disciplinary or grievance-related, ask for the safeguards in writing.
   Ask for the agenda, evidence, documents, possible outcomes, and reasonable notice before any meeting. For a disciplinary hearing, you have a legal right to be accompanied by an eligible companion, such as a workplace colleague, a certified workplace trade union representative, or a trade union official. For a formal grievance meeting, the legal right to be accompanied applies when the grievance is about a legal or contractual duty owed by the employer; if this is unclear, ask HR to confirm and request accompaniment as good practice.

6. Treat an investigatory meeting cautiously.
   If they say it is fact-finding or investigatory, ask for the questions in writing and offer written responses when you are able. There is usually not the same automatic legal right to be accompanied at an investigatory meeting, but you can still ask, especially if your workplace policy allows it or you need support because of your health.

7. If contact itself is making you worse, ask for that to be documented.
   Ask your clinician or occupational health, if involved, to describe practical limits on what you can currently manage, such as calls, meetings, concentration, written responses, or limited contact. They may describe functional limits rather than workplace instructions.

8. Keep a simple record.
   Save emails, messages, calendar invites, fit notes, agendas, and documents. If you do take a call, write a short note afterwards with the date, time, who was present, and what was said.

9. Move the pressure away from your manager if it continues.
   Ask HR, or your union if you have one, to agree a reasonable contact plan during sickness absence. If you need outside guidance, use Acas information.