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Med3 - do I need?

6 replies

QuattroFormaggi · 06/12/2021 12:18

Hi, wonder if anyone can advise me before I get into a situation with work? Kind of pre-emptive information please.

Broke a hand bone a week ago over the weekend. It's in plaster so I can't drive. I work 30 min drive away, with absolutely no public transport available and no one to give me a lift. I work in admin on Tuesday Wednesday and Fridays 8-4.30.

I text my line manager on the Sunday to prepare her. On Monday when I had spoken to the hospital I let her know all the details and offered to WFH if someone could get a work laptop to me (this is not an uncommon thing at my workplace). She said she'd talk to the IT manager.

I sat at home all week and on Friday at 3pm one of my colleagues delivered a laptop to me.

Over the weekend I have done some work (it is similar to specialised data inputting) just to stave off boredom and because we have got quite behind due to sickness and increased work loads post-pandemic.

I sent my manager a message to say I was all set up and able to WFH at same speed as in office, and that it would be for all this week and potentially next week.

Today I've received a request for my Med3 for HR.
It is my understanding that doctors don't issue Med3 until you've been off sick for more than 7 days. Until then you self-cert. I've messaged her back querying this, but the HR manager has form for being hopelessly wrong about loads of things and then bullying staff into accepting her word (a whole other thread!!!), so I'd like to know my rights before anything escalated.

Basically I'm going to do my full 24hrs this week and possibly next, from home, doing all the work I would do in the office. (I will probably do extra hours in order to support my colleagues (and because I'm bored) but won't claim OT, and won't even tell my manager I've done them).
Is this counted as sick leave or WFH?

Any other advice please?
Thank you!

OP posts:
prh47bridge · 06/12/2021 13:16

Doctors cannot issue fit notes (Med3) for the first 7 calendar days of a sickness absence. If they insist on having medical evidence rather than accepting self-certification, they should arrange and pay for this.

prh47bridge · 06/12/2021 13:18

Also, if you are working your contracted hours, this is definitely WFH, not sick leave.

QuattroFormaggi · 06/12/2021 14:01

Thank you, it is as I thought.
The '7 calendar days' - is that including non-working days? So if I report the sickness on a Sunday, does the 7 days end the following Sunday, or does it only include my 3 actual working days?

My biggest annoyance is that I could have WFH last week for 2 days but they didn't get their act together and get one of the (45) work laptops to me. Now our dept is behind and I will have more days listed as "sick" than I was unable to work.

OP posts:
Rainbowshine · 06/12/2021 14:10

Perhaps they want to check you’re safe to WFH with the fracture and plaster cast so the Med3 provides the GP to do that. Otherwise they will worry about personal injury issues etc

prh47bridge · 06/12/2021 14:26

@Rainbowshine

Perhaps they want to check you’re safe to WFH with the fracture and plaster cast so the Med3 provides the GP to do that. Otherwise they will worry about personal injury issues etc
If that is what they are worried about they need to go about it another way.
SilverHairedCat · 06/12/2021 14:28

If they failed to supply the IT, I'd argue that's not sick time off....

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