Been off for 6 weeks with fractured wrist (face plant)which req,d plating ,plaster off now and working with physio to get moving again ,I am signed off till dec 18th but have had a call from my company asking me to go in and assist trainee ,ie he picks me up and drives me around mentoring him,I declined this saying i was signed off ,am i right or can they force me to come in ?

They can’t force you if you’re signed off. They’d also probably find that their employee liability insurance would be invalidated should anything happen.

If you think you’re fit enough to do what they’re asking, you can ask your Doc to sign you back ‘on’. You’re under no obligation to do so though.

If you want to go back then explain to the doctor and see what he/she has to say.

If you don’t want to go back then tell them to do one 😉

I don’t think they can force you if you are signed off.

I actually wanted to return to work rather than face 12 week sat at home (unpaid for eight of them) and had to get a different sick note from the doctor saying I could do light duties with restrictions such as no flying.

The company is not insured to have an employee working when the doctor has signed them off as unfit I believe.

Becareful on the liability side- If you have an accident at work while you’ve been signed off the company will be in a world of shite..

And no, they can’t force you to go in.

If your’e signed off, you are signed off.

Yup I think in most places insurance policies have something in about workers not being in when signed off sick – could invalidate their insurance if you had an accident.

You cannot work when someone medically trained has said you are unfit for work

If you do and something goes wrong the company are in a world of legal pain

Nice way – ask them to check their insurance or say Dr has advised you not to

Less nice just refuse

….. can they force me to come in ?

as other’s have said probably not

However, What does your contract say about sick pay? or are you on SSP?

Just thinking, they may play hard ball re the pay if they have the ability
If the pay doesn’t bother you or your contractually covered, carry on.

As above are you on SSP? are you in pain? How do you feel about going back to work?

Yeah you’ll find some companies don’t like to risk the liability.

I fubar’d my wrist/arm and had surgery to bolt on a reasonable amount of metalworkon the monday and tried to go back to work on the Wednesday and they promptly told me to go home. Lasted until the following monday before I snuck back in and it was a day or two before my boss noticed.

EDIT:
For reference mine looked like this. 8 weeks seems like a long time to take off. I was riding DH after 10 weeks.

I agree with what those above say, but that does seem to be a long time to be signed off for – 6 weeks and two more to go – for what’s happened to you. What’s the nature of your work?

I had the same thing just over a year ago, broken then plated and screwed wrist and no-one gave me a sick note at all! I had a week off after the operation.

I’m not in any way suggesting you’re a shirker but doctors seem to err along way on the side of caution with sick notes. If you feel that you’re able and want to go in, surely you could go to your GP/ fracture clinic and ask them to declare you fit to work?

Yup I think in most places insurance policies have something in about workers not being in when signed off sick – could invalidate their insurance if you had an accident.

what if you are working from home?

you could go back to your GP and get a fit for work note but he will put restrictions as to what limatations of duties you can perform.

I am working from home a lot but the same rules about insurance liability apply apparently

Nature of work is heating engineer ,both hands req
Work for large national company 6 months full pay 😀
Volar bartons fracture ,which is end of distol radius smashed/dislocated
I am not a skiver ,but still swollen/bruised not young anymore 🙁

Back to work plans show due dilligence, but you will still need it in writing, both from the Doc and your employer

Stay signed off, even with a back to work note the temptation will be there to help out and you could put yourself back (I’ve been there with a busted scaphoid).

Guess it depends on your standing…

When i broke my leg – I was back at work after 5 days from being let out the hospital after negotiating with the company to cover taxi costs. I felt I could do 80% of my job and hated day time tv.

I have been promoted twice since then, relevant – hard to say.

Can’t force you do do anything when you’ve a sick note.

But it’s up to yourself to assess how saying no might affect your future in the place.

i.e if you’re reasonably secure, fair enough, but if the company is struggling, well, i’d say that won’t do your chances much good when troubled times appear if you’re on a shoogily nail..

Isn’t there something about ‘reasonable-ness’?. ie. is it reasonable/practical what they are suggesting you do? Are you being un-reasonable in not doing as they suggest?

I don’t know who the arbiter of this would be though!

and I should’ve said earlier: get well soon.

8 weeks for a broken wrist.. dont go back if you have the dr’s cert though cos you will end up humping and lumping even opening the car door etc and imagine all that radio you ll have to listen to all day and the bacon butties and chips for lunch .. probably best to not go back at all

A fit for work form has the option on it that says “needs review before returning to work” – is this ticked?

Essentially, you don’t need to be ‘signed back on’ to be able to work (from a doctors point of view), but speak to your employer as insurance etc comes into play.

DrP

Although you might not be fit enough to do your usual job an employer is within their rights to offer you alternative work which they believe you are capable of.The fit note even has a section where the doctor can suggest this.You can refuse.An employer can also dismiss you quite legally for being off sick.
http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/fair-reasons-for-dismissal
I guess maybe your employer is trying to get you back to work in some capacity. Tread carefully,make the right noises and be open to reasonable suggestions.

Nick1962 food for thought there 😯

be open to reasonable suggestions

You should get a ban for spouting that sort of bollocks on STW.

I’m disgusted, reported to the Mods.

I had a radius plate fitted about 5 years back just before XMAS. I was back at work in january but on light duties, as my work at that time involved regular lifting of 1-10kg objects. I did twinge it a bit when I dropped a stack of paperwork and tried to catch it.

To be honest, what they’ve asked you to do does seem quite reasonable – if mentoring someone is possible without any practical demonstrations.

Looking at from their point of view, they’ve paid you for 6 weeks already (for effectively a self inflicted injury) and made a sensible request that takes your limited ability into account. You’ve refused. Do not be surprised to find that your work boots bear a faint whiff of the boss’ urine upon your return to work 😉 Of course, if you are regularly treated like dirt then they’ve only got themselves to blame…

Alternative duties is feasible, they can even get another Dr in who can asses you to see if you fit enough for these. I’d play ball and offer to go in, sickness is getting taken less and less lightly by employers. Why should they pay you not to be at work when you could be in taking phonecalls, doing invoices or many other tasks.

Think I seen it mentioned above but it’s a fitness to work certificate not a sick note.

DrP speaks the truth (as usual).

You don’t need to be ‘signed back on’ you can go back whenever you feel up to it. You could get a note saying you would be fit for modified duties, you could tell them to bugger off as you have a valid sick note, you could go back with their agreement to modified duties. Up to you entirely, you just need to discuss it with the company. If they require a ‘alright for modified duties’ fit note then you can go bothering your GP

Some information here for you from TUC.

http://www.worksmart.org.uk/rights/my_employer_has_warned_me_about_my

I’m not sure why people think they’re bulletproof when on the sick, it’s really just the opposite.

A someone alluded to above, if I’d smashed myself up while ploughing down a steep hill on my mountain bike I’d be wary of taking any more time off than was absolutely essential. (i’ve made an assumption you fell off your bike – apologies if not).

Rightly or wrongly management would probably be less sympathetic than if your injury/illness was not self induced. As mentioned already, its tough times out there and turning down a fairly reasonable request to return to work may not be viewed particularly well if any redundancies pop up in near future.

I used to manage staff and was told to ensure that any staff who had been signed off with a ‘sick note’ had to be sent home. The companies insurance did not cover a person who was signed off – and this was just for office based work. If that had an accident and you had known that they were signed off and not sent them home you would be fired!

You just need to go back to the Doc and get him/her to terminate the sick note and then you can go back.