To go off sick in order to complete some qualifications

[FionaSays]

As per title…long standing employee, never had a sick day but completely fed up and in the process of looking at re-training ahead of a career switch. Huge company and plenty of
cover for my absence which means colleagues wouldn’t suffer as a result (bloated resource).

AIBU to take advantage of the generous sick
pay and have a few months off?

There are so many ‘nothing’ jobs in the economy though. A large company reduced its support/back-office staff by 50% not long ago and is seemingly managing fine. That’s in the private sector where there is incentive to cut costs, in the public sector there’s less accountability so such jobs are left to exist and cost the taxpayer money. A former flatmate worked in the civil service and used to boast about having nothing to do besides ‘chair meetings’ as her team had effectively outsourced their work to Big 4 consultants.

Ridiculously unreasonable, and you know it. You are not sick, and therefore it would be fraud. That will make you unemployable.
Maybe you just need to develop some common sense, OP?

What are you planning on being sick with? As you will need a sick note from the doctor
which you will then have to declare on things like travel insurance and maybe asked by future employers after you have done your training about periods off sick

Plus it's dishonest and your current employer may find out

YABVU
Someone I worked with had a lot of time off sick, and was found to be working elsewhere. He was fired for gross misconduct.

I had a lot of time of sick, and I was genuinely ill. It has messed up my employment opportunities. You will have to basically tell an new employer that you lied about why you were off sick. Good luck with that.

As soon as I read the op knew this thread would be full of screaming replies about what an awful person op is...and doom-mongering posts about how the op will be caught and fired and never work again.

Oh and of course, how on Earth does she think the GP would sign her off, what illness could she possibly have?! I mean really, what invisible illness could the op possibly claim to have? It's a puzzler for sure.

Back in the real world...

My dsis thought she had an excellent sick pay package she been paid for numerous times off sick shoulder surgery nhs elective loss surgery private then had 6 months off with stress claiming it was the stress of dealing with elderly dm needing a new kitchen after a flood which was true except she was the one causing the stress arguing with everyone trying to get more money etc and it was all but done apart from one panel that arrived damaged after 9 months when she went off She ended up back on probation despite being there years when she went back don't think she was allowed to do overtime anymore which she financially relied on as she could earn a lot of money doing it
No idea if she passed her probation and still works there as we are now nc

I mean, you could if you wanted but…

Youll have to explain your sickness record in many jobs
Your current employer will not think well of you and if it’s a small world you’d potentially be screwed because reputation
Your travel insurance premiums will increase
You may struggle to get life insurance (important if you have/ want children)
Most significantly, you will have to live with a horrible feeling of having being quite spectacularly and persistently dishonest.

You could but how will that look in references when they mention your time off sick before moving to your new employer which they have to do ? Will have to be explained and as someone who has regularly recruited both within the company and external candidates I can assure you this is a major factor for further investigation to get a believable explanation. To get that length of time off will require GP sign off - what are you proposing your illness will be and do you think you can convince the GP ? and will then have to be declared on life / travel insurance otherwise they will be invalidated. You might think this won’t happen but threads on MN and in the press regularly will show you that travel insurance is regularly invalidated because someone forgot to declare something.

And of course if you're off for any length of time you'll probably be referred to Occupational Health to discuss how your return to work can be supported. That will be awkward if you aren't even ill.

so you are not only going to lie to your employer and defrauding them but you also plan to waste NHS resources by taking up appointments and treatment from your GP which you don't need? what illness do you hope will befall you that gives you such a long sick leave?

This makes it harder for a genuine case. I’ve been off sick for 4 months with some serious health issues and my employer has been amazing. They know I’m not messing around. However, it’s been hard not to feel like I’m taking the mick even though I’ve been poorly. Don’t take for granted having such great sick pay and make it harder for those that need it

Why don't you ask either for an unpaid sabbatical or to temporarily drop one or two days a week? Especially if you are flexible about which days you drop. If you do some calculations you might find after tax you don't lose as much as you might expect. They don't need to know that this is a career change just say you took it on because you were interested in it but now you are finding it all too much and you need a couple of months breathing space to complete it to the best of your ability.

I can’t believe people think like this

Fraud and theft.
Get a grip.

Are you agreeing that it is or suggesting that it isn't?

Sorry - yes it absolutely would be! A disgrace that a professional has even considered this.

Thanks all, after careful consideration I’ve decided it’s not feasible. Appreciate all the input.