I agree with Bernie above. :grin:
Alcohol addiction is an illness just like, say, anorexia; both start as mental health issues but, unlike other MH conditions, these have very serious physical effects. Having said that, you have said yourself that you have been sober for three years, so you were not drunk at the time the shoplifting occurred. If you had been, that could be a mitigating circumstance from a criminal law perspective, however, being drunk in itself would also be grounds for dismissal even without stealing anything.
At the end of the day, employers can easily dismiss people for a lot less than that actual stealing; showing off work you took part in whilst in their employ was regarded by one large corporation as 'theft' of intellectual property
and even web browsing and posting online has been presented as gross misconduct for "stealing" employers' valuable time! While I can't see an employment tribunal claim succeeding in this case, nor a reinstatement being possible, I still think it may be possible to negotiate a neutral reference (i.e. just dates confirmed) if you put forward all your personal health issues. It won't cost either you or them anything nor can they be sued for telling just the plain truth, i.e. when you were employed by them.
It was possible to use mitigating circumstances to convince a judge not to give a custodial sentence to someone who stole a few grand from their employers and to order just a suspended sentence and community service due that person's circumstances so there's no reason not to try it with HR. :thumb:If you are very ill then you should be looking into putting in a claim for ESA, using all your medical evidence to back it up. There is an initial 13 week assessment phase and you should claim as soon as possible because as with most claims, they cannot be backdated.
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