Why have HR asked me this and can I say no?

[Hrrrrhr]

I started some medication recently. A side effect is drowsiness and on those occasions not driving. It’s supposed to settle over 8 weeks. I’ve therefore asked my employer whether I can work from home during this time. My job can completely be done from home and often is. I’ve been there a long time. They’re asking me if they can contact my gp and ask my gp a number of questions instead of going through occupational health as occupational health can take much longer (ie beyond the time I’m asking for to have the adjustment anyway). I’m not comfortable having direct questions sent to my gp as I’ve never heard of this before. I would prefer occupational health. Can anyone explain my rights? Thank you

Is your workplace accessible by public transport? Lots of people don't drive to work anyway.

From my extensive experience, they will supply a copy but won't do it to get permission.

So many meds have drowsiness listed as a possible side effect that it seems a bit over the top to request WFH just on the basis of that info.

This is an important point. It is likely that other employees are also on medication that lists drowsiness as a potential side effect and permitting them all to work from home may not work for the business.

They can ask, you can agree or not
You could also print out or send a link to the NHS page of that drug, and photocopy your presecription |(with the GP details obscured)
Or you could offer for the GP to give you a Fit Note saying you can't drive to work for two months - but the risk is that the GP might say you can't work for that time, and they would be stuck paying you sick pay for no work done

I would want a fit note for this situation with very clear recommendations from the Gp - including that you were fit to work your full schedule. If you're drowsy enough that driving to the office is too much, surely you're also going to struggle to get through your full workload and I should be aware of that. I'd also want to ensure daily check ins etc from a duty of care perspective.

I am on a daily antihistamine that could cause drowsiness so agree this is a side affect of many medicines. If it's this extreme that it affects you for months, I'd want to know I was looking after you.

I suspect your GP will charge for a service like this. I needed a GO letter and it was £25. Also took 2 weeks so I suspect it might not be the speedy solution your employer is looking for.

Absolutely this.
I’ve been sat next to someone who is literally putting their head down in the desk to have a forty winks. Incredibly dangerous and you don’t get paid to sleep.
They asked to work from home, we’ve said no. They are making mistakes and I honestly wonder how they present at home, having visions of them curled up in bed with their laptop! We would rather them go sick to be honest.

Obviously it depends on performance and if it can be measured.

I used to work in HR and we would often do this to fully understand the issue - if it may impact any other areas of work, how we could best support you, if it's a longstanding condition etc.
Exactly what occupation health would do, just speaking to a doctor who knows you.
Realistically, they don't speak with your doctor, they will write a letter with a few questions and get a GP signed secretary response to those questions which ticks the boxes and sits on your file to show they did their bit.

There may be an element of wanting to fully understand how often medication may impact your ability to get to the office, as this may influence what sort of precedence they wish to set, but otherwise, it's just information gathering.

If you're not hiding anything, it's worth doing so you can work together on your health.
I'll be candid and say we were always suspicious if somebody declined this request.

Will you also be notifying the DVLA that you won’t be driving for 8 weeks? That’s also expected if you’ve been given medical advice not to drive.

I'd agree to it but want to see the questions to be asked of the GP before they are sent

Get the bus/lift. Not everyone drives

Not necessarily. GPs vary in the speed in which they do these things. It could be done that day, or it could be a month. And it wouldn’t necessarily be free.

They don't need proof, they are choosing to ask for proof.

Are you afraid that they are going to find something out about you that you don’t want them to know? Approving the questions beforehand may help with this?

the suggestion on the medication is to not drive if you feel drowsy which you shouldn’t do even if you are not on medication. Are you intending to not drive at all for the next 8 weeks? If you are intending to drive to other places just not work then this can be an issue. You may be better continuing business as usual and having a back up plan for when you are unable to drive.

You can say what you like but if they need more information it may not be enough.
I used to contact GPs for health info all the time, we needed a consent form and the GP will be well aware of the rules around disclosure of information. You have a right to redact info off the report or prevent it's release completely, but honestly you'll just come across as obstinate and like you are hiding something.

What's the difference ( for you) between this and occ health? Would you consent to an oc health referral?

I wouldn't agree to it personally as I would also find it invasive and I'm very private about that sort of thing. However, if there was a problem because of it and I couldn't work from home I would have to get the bus to work.

How is it invasive if its only in relation to your job?
Surely they're only interested in the health side that affects your duties, not your medical history.

Companies do this as unfortunately, there are a lot of CF who spoil it for everyone by lying and faking illness.

If there's nothing to hide, surely it would make things easier knowing they have the facts straight from the GP.

I would say that I would prefer to go via OH route.

Is there a reason why you can’t get to work using public transport?

Lots of medications have drowsiness as a side effect but that doesn't mean you can just work from home for two months before you even know how you'll be affected

I'm not surprised they want to clarify what you're taking and why you need to be away from the office for such a long period of time.

Soo.. your employer's process is too long to verify occupational health adaptations for management needs.

The fix here is for them to review their process. It's astonishing they want a blanket access to speak to your GP. It's not an appropriate or reasonable answer to just say "the process HR stipulate in policy isn't fit for purpose, let's ask employees if we can speak to their GP".

If they want proof of the legitimate health issue, that IS reasonable and you could say you'll give written permission for your GP to answer pre-approved questions on a form if they pay the private appointment fee etc.

However, politely, they need to review their own policies if it doesn't work for them in these situations. It's hardly a unique situation. Why HR professionals seem so unable to manage sensible options when faced with the real world in their so-called sphere of expertise is beyond me.

There are many, many medications that list the potential to cause drowsiness as a side effect. Most people just get on with it without having to work from home for 8 weeks. Are you planning not to drive at all for 8 weeks? Unless you actually drive as part of your job then how you get there isn't your employers problem so I can see why they think it is a strange request.

Is it not possible to get to work by other means at least occasionally? Public transport, taxi, Uber? 8 weeks is a long time if not company policy to WFH.

Christ our oh providers turn apportionments and reports round within a week to 10 days.
As if GPs don't have enough to do.
As suggested above I'd try get a fit note with wfh as an adjustment it would still be their choice whether they accept it.

I think its pretty shameful they're making you jump through these hoops for some temporary adjustments as they're effectively saying they don't trust you.

Yes OH can and do contact GP, with your consent, if they need more info.

HR are not qualified to receive GP advice, especially when you have an OH team. Ask for an OH referral.

If they are doubting you are all could you give them a photos of the prescription/box?