Really sorry to hear this. In your shoes I would be livid and would send a strongly worded email to the top dog!
Definitely check your sickness and absence policies. Depending on length of service and any prior sickness absences in the past rolling 12mts (usually) you may be entitled to more of your regular pay.
Below is everything I had to do and would advise everyone who was working before their stroke.
Following this, if you’re covered for Income Protection insurance via your employer ironically this may be a life saver. It usually kicks in with a % of your normal salary after 6mts continuous sick leave and lasts x years but check your insurance. Unfortunately I was misadvised by my employer so I did not know I was eligible. If you can survive financially and don’t / can’t go back to work earlier it could be strategically advantageous financially to stay off to claim it.
If / when you return they should put you back to full pay and you’ll likely be on a phased return to work plan. If you need to see Occ Health again this may be extended. The irony being that they might not pay you to get well but they will pay you to be sick or on a phased return when half the time is absent. Not sure if employers are obliged to do this but mine did.
IMPORTANT! This may sound like a strange comment but make sure you have the ‘Family Legal Protection’ option on your home or car insurance right NOW. If your employer does anything dodgy after the policy starts it could give you peace of mind with up to £100k worth of legal expense cover for a range of issues including employment.
Join a union at work or find a general open one online directly with a small subscription (even smaller if you are out of work). Hopefully you will not need it but you must be in one before they can help or represent you for something that happens at work (and before a serious incident happens) as part of the service for free. Otherwise you can pay for a TU rep to join formal meetings and represent you directly but that is much more costly.
Make sure you get assessed and support from Occ Health as early as possible if / when you are thinking of going back for their guidance any reasonable adjustments you may need. I was able to return. Make sure it is face to face (if possible) and see the report first, before it is sent to your employer. Interestingly, I had a line in mine about always having someone with me for any formal (where HR attend and make notes). This should be set up with at least 7 days notice.
Please don’t bumble in thinking they will greet you with flowers and tea and you’ll be fine. I mean they should but just in case, talk to an expert, get representation, bring your adult child or friend if you have to, that is a reasonable adjustment!). And record these meetings no matter what anyone says. You may thank me later for saying that. If you had/have to face it alone don’t agree to anything or sign anything until you have sought advice and have a copy of any minutes. You may have a different recollection and you can amend the record or write your own and submit them.
I realise this is a very difficult time. I was there too. I hope this helps in terms of the big picture. Best wishes for your recovery.
The punchline in my case…tribunal. My employer felt the full force of the law.