What are your views around working at home whilst on sick leave? Advise or points for and against please. What are the liabilities (in particular insurance)? Is there any legislation regarding this? We have a number of people that have decided to ring in sick and then state they would like to work from home this is now causing issues. Working at home can be beneficial as a return to work programme after long term ill health or injury building confidence whilst encouraging someone to get back up to speed at their own pace. There are benefits were an employee has family care related problems. The problem is conducting home visits to conduct risk assessments and then follow up visits to ensure the risk control measures have been implemented, etc. Thank you Gary

Hi David Thank you for your response I agree with your comments. We have an adverse weather policy too which is similar. The specific part of my question is around personnel ringing in sick and then getting their managers to accept working at home instead of recording an absence. We do have some home workers which is managed, the sales team are remote workers by the nature of their roles. I believe each case should be assessed on its own merits as there are often mutual benefits to the employee and the employer. There are some functions and jobs that can only be done in the office for security reasons. Gary

I would be concerned that if people are really sick that they feel the need to continue to work. If they are sick they need to rest and enable the body to get over the infection. I see no issue of someone working from home if you allow this to happen for other situations such as visiting the dentist, train problems or just as part of flexible working (I am doing this at the moment) However what is the culture of the company to make people to want to work from home if they are too sick to come into the office? I also know that if someone has been signed off by the doctor they are not covered under insurance to work unless the doctor agrees they can work from home, an example I would think would be someone with a broken leg who cannot commute but can sit at a desk at home.

I think a lot depends on why they are sick. I work from home occasionally already so we have the policies, procedures in place anyway for that. So when I broke my ankle this summer (not work related) and had to spend 8 weeks none weight bearing I was unable to get into the office at all. I did however help out by undertaking some computer based work at home, but this was time limited so as not to hider my recovery. Once the pot was removed I got a fit note to return to work which specified reduced hours and home working while I built up my mobility to be able to travel most days. This worked well for both myself any my employer. However apart from lack of mobility I was fit to work I'm not sure I would have been in a position to do this if say I had been suffering from flue for example.

I think Brian has hit the nail on the head. It depends on a number of factors, but including: 1. Why they are off? 2. How long they are expected to be off for? 3. Can a practical alternative arrangement be agreed with the employee? 4. Is it ‘safe’ for them to do so? 5. Etc I don’t subscribe to the approach at #8. The purpose of the revised Med 3 was to challenge the old (and old fashioned) system of sick or not sick, to give greater flexibility and benefit to both employers and employees to remain at or return to work quicker or in different ways to what had been done previously. Gary, you might find the advice from the Department of work and Pensions on the Statement of Fitness for Work interesting reading. Some quotes from the guidance: Page 4. (to paraphrase) The Med 3 provides ADVICE for the employee; it is not binding on the employer Page 17. Is the advice on the Statement binding? No. This is about giving you greater flexibility and better information to manage sickness absence. It’s your choice after discussing the Statement with your employee, how to act on the doctor’s advice. Page 18. What should I do if an employee wants to return to work before the end of a ‘not fit for work’ Statement? Sometimes your employee will be able to return to work before the end of a Statement period where a doctor has advised that they are not fit for work. This may be because the employee has recovered faster than the doctor expected, or the doctor did not know of ways in which you could support your employee to return to work. If you agree with your employee that it is appropriate for them to return to work, you do not need to wait until the end of the Statement period for them to do so. In summary, I think the post raises an entirely valid point. As always in our job, there is more than one way to arrive at a solution to a problem. A sick note in itself shouldn’t be an overwhelming barrier for employers or employees.

But, as I say, that's just me. If someone is on full pay when off sick (as most LA's then they would not want to anywhere near work) then again if on state sick pay I dare say that they will put their health at risk to stay solvent. If my home was at risk I would beg to work from home but as an electrician that would be impossible and my H&S work has a lot of site work so that would be out of the door as well. So perhaps I'm just jealous! :-)

As yourightly say Cans, iy depends on the firm I guess. If a firm can work around it then fine. It wont work for a small electrical contracting firm though but in an office where there is spare cappacity then why not? I have to ask though, if there is spare capacity to share the work then by definision not enough work to keep all busy. Hey ho

Messy. In fairness, if the process isn't well managed then the outcomes you refer to may well transpire. But i have used this approach for years and the the revised med 3 and the associated guidance seeks to encourage employers (and employees) to adopt the same. If I can be clear, I do not advocate a draconian system that seeks to force people back to work, either against their will or before they are ready. Quite the opposite. What I do suggest is that employers, employees, GPs etc use their collective imaginations for mutual benefit. The trouble is that some GPs (the medical professional you refer to) are sometimes only too happy to write a sick note in order to get them out of the door and move onto the next patient. This isn't always what the patient wants. I can use myself as a prime example. Some years ago I had major heart surgery and was given a 'standard' 3 month sick note. I was fit to return to work in a limited capacity well before then and following a phased return, before my 3 months were up. Somebody else undergoing the same op may not have been in the same position. It depends on a number of factors. I am as always more than happy to be wrong, but my experience over many years suggests not. I have even had a GP thanking me for my approach. I currently have one employee suffering from 2 chronic conditions almost begging me to let him back to work. Overall, my experience of a more enlightened approach to managing sickness absence has been positive. It doesn't and can't always work but, it can and does. We appoint a case manager, we talk to the employee, the manager, GPs (some are more interested and cooperative than others). This process has the potential to save jobs and livelihoods. In fairness not all employers necessarily have the resources to adopt such an approach, but it isn't difficult and there is a potential for benefits all round if well managed and by keeping the employee at the heart of the process. It isn't a dark art, it is simply about removing barriers. Employers and employees who are unwilling to be creative in actively and creatively managing sickness absence are missing out. And their employees might also be.

Invictus. I agree with you. I have already posted my recent experience. While "Sick" I was not expected to complete a full days work just helped out as I was able. In retrospect I should have gone for a fit note from the very first for home working and reduced hours. However this is the first sick note I have ever had in over 25 years working life! My experience with the doctor was that he did not know how the fit note worked. Even when my leg was out of pot he would much rather have signed me off work for a few more weeks then let me do as much productive work for my employer as I was able. And as for the person who made comment about LA staff not wanting to work if sick well I know many local authority employees who would be upset by that, and my employer has a six month full pay policy but I was desperate to get back as soon as possible - people who live in glass houses as they say.

quote=Gary Gordon]What are your views around working at home whilst on sick leave? Advise or points for and against please. What are the liabilities (in particular insurance)? Is there any legislation regarding this? We have a number of people that have decided to ring in sick and then state they would like to work from home this is now causing issues. Working at home can be beneficial as a return to work programme after long term ill health or injury building confidence whilst encouraging someone to get back up to speed at their own pace. There are benefits were an employee has family care related problems. The problem is conducting home visits to conduct risk assessments and then follow up visits to ensure the risk control measures have been implemented, etc. Thank you Gary

If more people could work at home when they have a cough or cold then it would mean less spreading of germs around the office causing everyone else to get ill too. If staying at home means that other people don't get the bug too and also that some work gets done by the employee whilst at home then that is win win in my book. As I work from home I also work from home when I'm sick. Suits me. Suits the boss. No problem. If I'm unable to work for several days I can take the time off. No problem. There is a huge difference between being a bit poorly (and often contagious too) and genuinely being very unwell and unable to work. Most people are sensible enough to understand the difference between the two.

The concern would be if you declared yourself sick and then felt pressured to work from home whilst being on the 'sick'. If I was ill then I would not work from home unless the company didn't insist on me reporting sick but accepted I was working from home. so time off sick was not recorded on my personnel records. If you were off through work related stress, etc. then the last thing you would want is to be in a position were you were still expected to work.