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Self Certification of Sickness Absence
Issue 33 - December 2009
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Over the last few months, the Government has been closely monitoring the number of swine flu cases in the UK and the strain the pandemic has put on the National Health Service...
During the summer months there has been a reduction in the number of reported cases but many experts have predicted that numbers will steadily rise again following the onset of autumn. The worry is that this increase will coincide with the peak in normal seasonal flu which could result in a debilitating strain on the National Health Service.
The Plan
Back in June this year, to ease the burden on the National Health Service, the Government drafted proposals to increase the number of days a person can self-certificate in terms of absences from work due to illness. Employees are currently able to sign themselves off sick from work for a period of 1 week (or 7 days including weekends). The plan is to extend this period to 2 weeks (or 14 days of absence including weekends). In September the Government clarified that this plan, if it goes ahead, will apply to all absences from work, not just those due to swine flu.
This will mean that an employer will NOT be able to insist that an employee provides a doctor’s certificate to cover any period of absence shorter than 14 days.
It is envisaged that this proposal will reduce the number of employees making visits to their GP surgeries to obtain sickness certificates which will in turn ease the burden on General Practitioners.
Implementation
There is, as yet, no implementation date for these proposals and we will have to wait and see whether the extension is granted by the Government.
The Affect
There is a lot of concern in business circles that these proposals will result in an increase in the number of employees who are not genuinely ill taking time off work. Motivated by this concern, the Government has been urged by the Business Advisory Network to only extend the self certification period to 10 days or make the changes temporary for as long as the swine flu pandemic is at its peak.
The Remedy
Research carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has shown that the majority of employees are loyal to their organisations and do not take time off work unnecessarily.
There may always be the few employees, however, that will view the proposals as an opportunity to avoid work. Therefore, in order to discourage this from happening, organisations should:
- Manage sickness effectively and ensure that adequate data in respect of employee absences is collated and reviewed regularly.
- Ensure that a robust and well communicated attendance management policy is in place to ensure that all employees are aware of the reporting procedures for absences and understand their responsibilities under the policy.
- Carry out back to work interviews to investigate the reason for an employee’s absence and determine any underlying issues that may have contributed to the illness.
- Consider using an occupational health service as an alternative for verification of illnesses where employees are entitled to occupational sick pay (as opposed to statutory sick pay).
Obtaining more information about Swine Flu
The following sources are available to obtain up to date information on swine flu:
England:
NHS Direct telephone 0845 4647
www.nhs.uk
www.direct.gov.uk/swineflu
Scotland:
NHS 24 telephone 08454 24 24 24
www.nhs24.com
Wales:
NHS Direct Wales telephone 0845 4647
www.nhsdirect.wales.nhs.uk
www.wales.gov.uk/health
Northern Ireland:
NHS Direct Northern Ireland telephone 0800 0514 142
www.dhsspsni.gov.uk
www.nidirect.gov.uk
World Health Organisation (WHO):
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html
Further Advice and Support
Further advice and support can be obtained from your HR Department in respect of swine flu and managing absences from work. For NorthgateArinso clients, our HR Outsourcing team is able to provide specific support in drafting a policy and procedure to cover absence. Please contact the NorthgateArinso HR Advice Line on 0845 299 0243 who will be happy to help with this and any other HR related queries.