Further to the European Court of Justice decisions in the cases of Stringer and Pereda, the Department of Business, Innovation & Skills published guidance on the interaction between annual leave and sick leave.
Archive for the ‘Health & Safety’ Category
BIS Guidance on interaction between annual and sick leave
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010Tribunal Allows Holidays to be Carried Forward
Monday, February 22nd, 2010Following two important decisions on holiday pay (Stinger and Pereda) from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) , an employment tribunal has now ruled in a case (believed to be the first case of this nature since last year’s decisions) in favour of the employee.
The case – Shah v First West Yorkshire Ltd – involved an employee that was off sick for three months, but had previously booked leave to be taken within this period. The employee wanted to change the timing of his leave, but as this meant the leave would have to be carried forward to the next year, the employer refused the request.
The Tribunal ruled that the employer’s approach was wrong: while the Working Time Regulations specify that no more than eight days can be carried forward, the Tribunal felt that Shah was “entitled to take the holidays which he was prevented by ill-health from taking… in the following leave year.”
The judgement confirms that the law on carrying forward holidays in the UK is currently a grey area. In normal circumstances carrying-forward more than eight days should not be permitted, and the case of Lyons v Mitie Security confirms that employers do not always have to approve leave, even if the alternative will be for the employee to lose it. But in cases where an employee is unable to take leave due to illness, employers should normally consider permitting the leave to be carried forward.
Fitness for Work Guidance Published
Monday, February 22nd, 2010The Department for Work & Pensions has published “Statement of Fitness for Work, A guide for employers“.
Under the new “Fit Note” scheme, there will still be an option for doctors to advise that your employee is “not fit for work” – just like the current sick note scheme. However, from 6 April, doctors will also have an option to advise if a patient “may be fit for work” and offer advice on the effects of their health condition. Doctors will be able to advise that their patient would be able to work, subject to the employer’s agreement, if temporary changes such as reduced working hours or amended duties could be accommodated.
It is hoped that the new scheme will provide employers with better options to manage sickness absences, helping to get staff back to work quicker in appropriate cases. The DWP is urging employers and doctors to visit www.dwp.gov.uk/fitnote to find out more.
Flexible Working is good for health
Friday, February 19th, 2010A review published this week by the Cochrane Collaboration has suggested that flexible working will benefit not only family life but health too.
Flexible working conditions and their effects on employee health and wellbeing included ten studies involving a total of 16,603 people which focused on various different forms of flexible working. Self-scheduling of working hours was found to have positive impacts on a number of health outcomes including blood pressure, sleep and mental health. In one study, for instance, police officers who were able to change their starting times at work showed significant improvements in psychological wellbeing compared to police officers who started work at a fixed hour. “Flexible working seems to be more beneficial for health and wellbeing where the individuals control their own work patterns, rather than where employers are in control,” said the review lead, Clare Bambra of the Wolfson Research Institute, Durham University in the UK. “Given the limited evidence base, we wouldn’t want to make any hard and fast recommendations, but these findings certainly give employers and employees something to think about.”
The Cochrane Systematic Review included ten studies involving a total of 16,603 people which focused on various different forms of flexible working. Self-scheduling of working hours was found to have positive impacts on a number of health outcomes including blood pressure, sleep and mental health. In one study, for instance, police officers whowere able to change their starting times at work showed significant improvements in psychological wellbeing compared to police officers who started work at a fixed hour. “Flexible working seems to be more beneficial for health and wellbeing where the individuals control their own work patterns, rather than where employers are in control,” said the review lead, Clare Bambra of the Wolfson Research Institute, Durham University in the UK. “Given the limited evidence base, we wouldn’t want to make any hard and fast recommendations, but these findings certainly give employers and employees something to think about.”