Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

I was wondering if I could go back into work with my plaster cast on? I have been told by a couple of people that it's not allowed whilst you are still signed off sick as your employers won't be covered insurance wise should anything happen to you.
Is this the case?
I have googled without much success, may have to ring Citizen's advice in morning if m'learned friends on here don't know !

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Couldn't you seek advice from your own company's HR dept...they may have their own policies regarding such things.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

unless things have changed linds,you cannot return to work,whilst yer sick note is running, simple as.;)

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Think I might have to Marg, am bored already and could probably do something at work but don't want to make things worse ! Thought there might be a simple answer, maybe Cashy's is it !:o

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

that was always the case in my union career linds, though it ended 10 yrs ago,i think it still stands.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

If you go back to work before your sick note ends then you cant have another sick note for the same illness. This means if you do go back to work then you will get no sick pay if you make the problem worse. Thats what i got told when i was put on the sick 14 years ago.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

I think if you read the MED 3 sick note carefully, it say " I advise that you refrain from work for a period of....."

Therfore it is advice not an instruction that you cannot work - in reality your Company should make a risk assesment both to you and your fellow employees of the possible risks in you coming back to work, if they deem them to be within acceptable limits there is no reason why you can't go back to work with a pot on

They may have to check with the Companies insurers though

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Thanks Mick, it's the insurance bit that I was pondering, if something fell on my arm or I slipped it could be a tricky if the company then turned round and said I wasn't covered !

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Speak with your own HR dept.....they will know what the insurance position is, and will be able to advise you.
I'm sure I had nurses return to duty before their sick note ran out, but of course they were checked by our own Occupational health Dept and given the all clear first.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Cashman is right, you cannot return to work whilst covered by a sick note, your doctor has to sign you as fit to work, this is a condition of the employers liability insurance.

You may be able to return to work with a cast on provided that both your doctor and employer support this and they will have to adapt your duties until you are 100% fit. You can ask to discuss this with your line manager who will take advice from your HR department at Head Office, or you could contact them yourself as already suggested.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Thanks peeps ! Looks like I will be sitting it out for a while then , at least till fracture clinic next week !:o

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Gives you plenty of time to think of new threads on here.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Crikey Lindsay thought you were trying to work me out with the thread title!!!!!!!

A company like boots would not accept a worker going back to work whilst signed off sick due to the insurance implication as you mentioned. However, there is nothing to stop you going back to your doctors and asking him/her to sign you back on but with a covering letter stating limited duties/reduced hours.

I did that after my car accident as it was driving me mad stuck at home

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

exactly what i said without the waffle.:D;)

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

It's not necessarily an issue with the company you work for if they say you CAN'T work, as it is likely their insurance company who states that they will not cover them if something happens to you whilst on sick pay, particularly when you are temperarily disabled.

I dont believe there is anything that would necessarily cover you under human rights, as their policy wouldn't be seen as unreasonable, and essentially it may be seen that you're just putting yourself under unnecessary risk by going back to work.

Saying that though, they may be able to do something to find work for you, but you'll have a problem getting sick pay if you decide it's too much for you to do with your problem. Schools allow students with limbs in plaster to attend, so I assume it isn't ALWAYS a problem, I guess it all comes down to policy.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

I don't think Lindsay was referring to human rights when she said HR.

I think she means human resources i.e. the personnel dept at work who pay your wages and know all about employment law. :)

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Well in that case, she probably wont get to work, because she'd only been challenging policy, which is very unlikely to be changed for insurance reasons. It would cause loads of implications for the employer to allow someone to work who is in a plaster. But like I said, schools manage to allow kids into school and you would've thought they had more risk of getting injured more with the hustle and bustle than working at boots, so theres no harm in asking.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Did you speak to your company human remains dept about returning to work Lesley?

I think they will let you but only if they can find a suitable job for you to do with a pot on.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

It makes a refreshing change, as the advert once said, that you want to go back to work, Lindsay, I felt like that for years after I was told to forget ever working again, I only wis things like Accy Web had been around in the early days of my illness

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Not rung them yet, I have to go back to fracture clinic on thursday and the way it's feeling at the moment doesn't exactly inspire me with confidence !:( It's hurting more now than when I did a week ago .Wouldn't have been so bad if I had been trollied but I'd only had 4 pints, a fraction of my usual capacity !:rolleyes:

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

If I uncover the table legs again, love, will it take your mind off your sore thumb?

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

It's gotta be worth a try, even the Fosters magic medicine isn't working !:rolleyes:

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

at my last place there was a girl who broke her thumb and had weeks off work, the boss wanted her to come back but she refused because she had a sick note... i didnt complain, i got all her extra work and so got paid more!

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Just an update, back from hospital today, plaster cast is off, I now have a splint and as of now(8:20 pm) my thumb has doubled in size again! It's even more painful than it was with the cast on and I am now well niffed off with all this. I have also been signed off for another 3 weeks. People have heart surgery and get better quicker than this grrrrr.

Re: Anyone clued up on HR ?
 

Sorry to hear that Linds but doesn't sound like things are right yet. Hope you get sorted soon.