WRC recommends five more paid rest days for bus driver

The WRC recommended that a transport company give a bus driver five additional paid rest days as a goodwill gesture after a dispute over a medical assessment and grievance handling. The recommendation was dated 5 December 2023. The driver said he was stood down after a medical assessment flagged a possible cardiac event, causing distress and sick leave. The company said it had to follow the medical officer’s fitness decision and had reimbursed the cost of a private ECG. The officer found the company was not responsible for the medical procedures and was obliged to follow the fitness decision. But it had not formally answered the driver’s grievance or held a meeting. The five further days were recommended as an exceptional goodwill gesture, not compensation for wrongdoing.