The recommendation that expenditure by employers, which is targeted at keeping sick employees at work, for example, medical treatments or vocational rehabilitation costs should attract tax relief. The government will decide upon this as part of the 2013 Budget.
See DWP press release
DWP PUBLISH UPDATED FIT NOTE GUIDANCE
7 March 2013
The Department for Work & Pensions has published updated guidance for all stakeholders in a bid to provide greater support for sick workers in returning to work more easily.
Fit note guidance is available for GPs, hospital doctors, employees, employers & line managers and occupational health practitioners.
The improved guidance is based upon research and feedback from patients, GPs and employers and is designed to maximise the full potential of the fit note by looking at what a person can do whilst sick instead of what they can’t do.
Dr Bill Gunnyeon, Chief Medical Adviser for the Department for Work and Pensions, said:
“The fit note can be valuable in helping people return to work quickly and avoid long-term absence and potential job loss – this revised guidance helps doctors, employers and patients use it to its full potential.” The guidance aims to clarify that the fit note is about someone’s general fitness for work and is not tied to their most recent job, allowing flexibility to discuss what changes could help someone do some work. It includes clarification about the legal status of the fit note in relation to sick pay, situations where an employer cannot make any changes, and non-medical problems at work along with details about the computer generated fit note. The original guidance explained how the fit note differed from the sick note when it was launched three years ago. The fit note considers what work someone might be able to do when their condition is taken into account, rather than what they can’t do under the previous sick note system.
All revised guidance is available from the DWP website.
NEW STUDIES SHOW SICK LEAVE COSTS UK EMPLOYERS BILLIONS EVERY YEAR
19 July 2013
Two separate reports show the extent that absence from work is costing UK businesses.
Absence from work in the UK has dropped to a new record low, according to the latest CBI/Pfizer Absence and Workplace Health Survey, but highlights figures from the ONS that state overall absences still cost the economy £14bn a year.
The thirty-year survey found the average absence rate was 5.3 days in 2012, down from 6.5 days in 2010 - saving business £3 billion.
However, it said that almost £1.8bn was lost from an estimated one-in-eight sick days taken for non-genuine reasons, with one in five employers believing employees take 'sickies' as an occasional perk.
CIPP Policy News Journal
16/04/2014, Page 497 of 519
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