The Prime Minster has currently pledged to get all adults over the age of 18 a booster vaccination by the end of January which he changed last week. To aid in the changes to the COVID-19 booster roll out being bought forward to the end of December – the Government have made a temporary change to the way employees can self certify to help support this scheme.
What are the standard rules?
7 days off sick or less
If you’re off work sick for 7 days or less, your employer should not ask for medical evidence that you’ve been ill. Instead they can ask you to confirm that you’ve been ill. You can do this by filling in a form yourself when you return to work. This is called self-certification.
More than 7 days off sick
If you’re off work sick for more than 7 days, your employer will usually ask for a fit note (or Statement of Fitness for Work) from a GP or hospital doctor. Fit notes are sometimes referred to as medical statements or a doctor’s note.
What are the temporary Rules?
28 days off sick or less between 10th December 2021 – 27th January 2022.
If you’re off work sick for 28 days or less, your employer should not ask for medical evidence that you’ve been ill. Instead they can ask you to confirm that you’ve been ill. You can do this by filling in a form yourself when you return to work. This is called self-certification.
More than 28 days off sick or less between 10th December 2021 – 27th January 2022.
If you’re off work sick for more than 28 days, your employer will usually ask for a fit note (or Statement of Fitness for Work) from a GP or hospital doctor. Fit notes are sometimes referred to as medical statements or a doctor’s note.
How to count sick days
When you work out the number of days that you’ve been sick, you need to count all the days in a row you’ve been sick, including days you do not usually work, such as weekends and bank holidays.
What To Do When Annual Leave And Staff Sickness Absences Collide?
With lots of employee on annual leave for the Christmas period – take a look at our blog on how to manage this if it occurs.
You must make sure you are following the most up to date COVID-19 current rules on isolation to ensure you are protecting your team, your business and family.
COVID-19 Support
If you need any help or support then please feel free to book a call using the button below and one of the team would be happy to help.