The new Fit for Work service – fit for purpose itself?

The effect of employee absences on employers in Scotland is significant. In 2011/12, approximately 1.7 million working days were lost in Scotland. In 2013, PwC published research indicating that UK employers face an employee absence bill of almost £29bn each year. Around 90% of this loss stems from sickness absence.

There is therefore a vicious circle at play in respect of employee absences. While it would be impossible for an employer to have no staff absences, it is important to minimise such absences as much as possible and ensure that employees return to work as soon as soon as reasonably practicable. It is this ethos which drives the government’s Fit for Work Scotland service.

What is the service?

Following recommendations made by Dame Carol Black in her 2008 report, “Working for a healthier tomorrow”, the government developed a “fit for work” regime. In England and Wales, the system is delivered through the private sector whereas in Scotland it is provided by NHS Scotland. In practice, however, the service is fairly straightforward to understand, essentially comprising:

1. a helpline and website to help advise employers on preventing unnecessary absences; and
2. a referral service for occupational health assessments. Referrals here can be made by the employer or GP where an employee has been absent for over four weeks. Referral is possible for an employee who has been absent for less than this period, but can only by a GP who feels the absence will ultimately exceed four weeks.

The assessment process

Once referred, the employee is then registered with the Fit for Work service and assessed within 48 hours. The guidance accompanying the Fit for Work regime roll-out indicates that physical assessments will be rare, with telephone assessments intended to be the norm. In the event a physical assessment is required, it must only take place at a location within 90 minutes on public transport of the employee’s home address. Whether a telephone or physical assessment is undertaken, the assessor will focus on the conditions causing the employee’s absence, whether related to health, work or personal reasons.

Return to Work Plan

It is recognised by the DWP that identification of why an employee is absent is only half the battle. The advantages to an employer of identifying such causes will only be beneficial if it can then proceed to combat those issues.

Therefore, following assessment, the assessor will look to compile a Return to Work Plan in collaboration with the employee. The guidance allows the assessor to contact the employer as part of this process, but only where the employee consents and the assessor considers it necessary to acquire further necessary information in respect of the employee’s relationship with the employer.

Once completed, the Return to Work Plan is shared with both the employee’s GP and employer (subject to redaction of any parts the employee wishes to keep confidential). Crucially, the Return to Work Plan will also state whether it is felt the employee is:

1. fit to return to work immediately;
2. fit to return to work subject to conditions or a proposed timetable; or
3. fit to return to work subject to the employer making reasonable workplace adjustments or following the given recommendations.

What next?

Ultimately, it remains the responsibility for an employer to act on any changes in a Return to Work Plan. After the Plan has been shared with an employer and an employee has returned to work, the assessor will remain in touch for the next fortnight with the employee to check whether the plan is being implemented.

An employee is removed from the FFW scheme:

1. a fortnight after their return to work;
2. where an employee has been in the FFW for over three months; or
3. where the assessor feels the employee will be absent in excess of three months.

Review

While the objectives of FFW are laudable, it is important not to think of the service as a silver bullet.

While the FFW service has been trialled in certain parts of England and Wales, there is little known about the quality of service that will be offered in a Scotland. Moreover, the services trialled elsewhere in the UK have been run by private sector providers, so there is little to suggest how successful NHS Scotland will be in running FFW in Scotland.

Quality of service concerns aside, there are more substantive flaws with the FFW system:

1. FFW is non-mandatory.

For most absent employees, the benefits of having an independent assessor discuss the reasons for their absence should hopefully be clear. At the very least, the assessor can be used as an outlet for that employee’s ailments, concerns or grievances. Without the assessor’s involvement, such issues may never be openly discussed by the employee or raised with the employer, serving only to perpetuate the catalysts for an employee’s long term absence.

Nonetheless, the FFW cannot help employees who do not wish to engage with it. Employers of such employees may continue to face the problems associated with medium to long term absenteeism.

2. Referral limits.

PwC also published evidence indicating that the cost of employees “pulling a sickie” cost British businesses about £9bn per year. Usually a “sickie” is taken for a day or two only and, as such, would not be addressed in terms of the FFW scheme.

While it is appreciated that the FFW was never intended to address very short term absences, the referral limit will have no impact in reducing “sickies” and employers will continue to incur the costs associated with such employee practices.

3. Underlying workplace issues.

While many employers seek to encourage employees to raise concerns or issues with their line managers, departmental heads or HR departments, the reality is that many do not. Further, even where such measures are in place, employees may be reluctant to engage them for a variety of reasons. Not everybody can work for an employer featured on “Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work for List”.

It remains to be seen how most employers will respond to Return to Work Plans which cross their desks. However it can be assumed many employers will simply disregard them. The FFW concept relies on an employer’s willingness to accept reasonable changes to their workplaces or methods. Alas, not all employers are open to such suggestions.

Conclusion

There are unfortunately many barriers to the FFW regime being a success. Like many workplace improvement initiatives, the FFW is necessarily non-compulsory. It relies on a reasonable degree of give and take on the part of the employer and the employee.

While the FFW regime may well prove successful in relation to employees who are genuinely absent on health-related reasons, its success in respect of other factors (employee-employer disputes, personality clashes, personal reasons, etc) is likely to be more limited. Where an employee has been absent for four or more weeks due to a non-medical reason, this can suggest a more fundamental breakdown in the employment relationship. In such instances, the damage may well already be done and there may be little an assessor or a Return to Work Plan can do to repair it.

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