A funeral director off sick from work for two years with cancer has been awarded more than £60,000 after bosses sacked her for not being able to be on call.

Janie Crampshee won the payout after an employment tribunal ruled Dignity Funerals ‘didn’t give her a chance’ when she returned after undergoing chemo and radiotherapy.

Ms Crampshee – who described the role as her ‘dream job’ – said that as part of her recovery she was initially going to be unable to be on call or lift any bodies.

However, because she could not put a time frame on how long these ‘reasonable adjustments’ would be in place, bosses decided to fire her instead.

Ms Crampshee has now been awarded £60,940.62 in damages after suing the national chain for disability discrimination and unfair dismissal.

The tribunal was told she started working as a trainee funeral director for Aberdeen Funeral Directors in August 2014.

She qualified as a funeral director in 2015 but was diagnosed with cancer in January 2016. While she was off sick in March 2017, Dignity bought the firm, the Aberdeen hearing was told.

In 2018, Ms Crampshee returned to work for three days a week. However, in April an occupational health report for the firm said her phased return was ‘causing an operational and financial problem’.

The tribunal heard that in May, Ms Crampshee started a period of long-term absence caused by stress related to her return to work and discrepancies in pay.

In July, she asked for several conditions to be agreed prior to coming back.

She told bosses: ‘One – not to work on-call rota. I am unable to do this due to fatigue following chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Two – no heavy lifting or lifting of any height.

‘This is due to weakness in arms after having lymph nodes and tumours removed and weakness from chemotherapy.’ 

In October, Ms Crampshee told managers she wanted to ‘build up to full-time hours’ as she was ‘getting better all the time’.

However, Dignity considered her not being on the on-call rota a ‘sticking point’, claiming it was concerned about ‘grumblings’ from colleagues who would have to cover for her.

Ms Crampshee was presented with three options – a full-time funeral director role, a four-week trial as a funeral service administrator on significantly reduced pay or an end to her employment. 

She rejected the administrator role as she ‘could not live on the reduced salary’ and was later fired on ‘capability’ grounds.

In relation to the full-time post, she was told: ‘Fundamental to… this role is your ability to participate in the company’s “on-call” rota, to arrange and conduct funerals and to be physically able to lift deceased persons.’

However, the tribunal pointed out that the branch ‘had been able to function and cover on-call duties for some two years when the claimant was off work undergoing her cancer treatment’.