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Fit Notes

Although the fit note was introduced in 2010, I am often asked what is expected from an employer when a doctor issues their employee with a fit note.

Some interesting points for employers to note: 

• The fit note is only advice and employers are not bound by it. It is for employers to determine whether or not to accept the advise set out in a fit note.
• Employers are within their rights to gather other evidence about the employee's fitness for work from other healthcare professionals and may choose to give this precedence over the advice in the fit note.
• Access to Work grants can help employees with a disability or health condition. This includes paying towards equipment or support.
• The fit note won't tell employer's what changes to make, but will give advice about how the employee's health affects what they can do at work.
• If employers can't make any changes to take ccount of the advice in the fit note, they don't have to.
• If the fit note says the employee may be fit for some work with adjustments, but these cannot be agreed with the individual, employers should treat the fit note as if it says that the employee is not fit for work. The emlpoyee does not need a new fit note from their doctor to confirm this.
• An employee can come back to work at any time, even if this is before their fit note expires. They do not need to go back to their doctor first.
• People do not need to be signed back to work and there is no option on the fit note to do so. If the employee's doctor assesses that they are fit for work, they will not be issued with a fit note.
• When an employee returns on reduced hours, they may be paid only for the hours they actually attend work (unless the contract of employment or sickness policy states otherwise).
• It is good practice to confirm any adjustments in writing and agree a review period.

Where an employee who has been absent for a long time suddenly decides they are fit to return to work, but the employer is sceptical (perhaps because the desire to return coincides with the end entitlement to sick pay), they may wish to ask their own occupational health advisor to assess the individual before allowing them to return to work. Ideally, contracts of employment shoud contain the power to enable the employer to do so.