Speaking of long term illness, you could start a whole new thread about HR's attempts to wangle their way out of paying out the 3 years loss of license insurance in recent months.
Seems the policy is rapidly evolving; if you thought you were clearly covered if you lose your license, you may wish to think again.
For those whose medical is suspended, pending a final decision, EK would appear to be trying to terminate them before their medical is permanently withdrawn, thereby avoiding the need to pay out.
Anecdotally, with the significant increase in flying hours in the past few years, there would appear to be a significant rise in long term medical issues, along with medical suspensions. EK is happy to take the benefit of increased productivity, but wouldn't appear to be prepared to take responsibility for the resulting medical issues.