GOVERNMENT’S FIRST YEAR, THE BONUS YEARS AND BRITAIN’S BORN-AGAIN WORKFORCE.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

May 10, 2011.

GOVERNMENT’S FIRST YEAR, THE BONUS YEARS AND BRITAIN’S BORN-AGAIN WORKFORCE.

The coalition government can guarantee bonus years beyond its current term if it continues providing bonus years for Britain’s older generations, and gets big buy-in from the most powerful group of voters.

That’s the message from Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s lifestyle organisation Saga, who says that a year into government, the coalition has done a brilliant job of ditching the Default Retirement Age – but now she wants to see the same effort put into other proposals and policies affecting older people.

“There’s definitely an improvement for older people on some fronts, but the coalition’s young front-bench frontline team hasn’t quite got the required appreciation and vice-like grip on all the issues, and what the most powerful group of voters – older people, who are twice as likely to vote as younger generations – want and need,” said Dr Altmann.

“They want ‘bonus years’ – years beyond their 60s when they can carry on working part-time and earning. The legislation is there, as is the potential for legal enforcement of questionable employer tactics, but perhaps not quite the focus of support and creativity to ensure current or prospective employers embrace the concept of part-time work as enthusiastically as the born-again workforce.

“So, in my assessment of the government’s first year, my report would be littered with opposites: the government has delivered some brilliant reforms in its first year, but I’ve also scribbled ‘disaster’, ‘unpopular’, ‘too slow’ and ‘no help’ in the comment boxes too.

“The coalition promised it would 'reinvigorate pensions and retirement'. It certainly can’t be accused of pushing pensions into the long grass - it has been a struggle to keep up with the pace of new proposals. But, overall, it has done more to potentially reinvigorate retirement years than pension plans.

“Older people want to work longer – ideally part-time, whether for pleasure, keeping active, lifestyle, stimulation or money – and to enjoy those bonus years.

“I’m being realistic, not negative, when I say the real downers are around women’s state pension age - but that is part of a bigger picture of raising pension ages being a necessary policy because of ongoing economic issues. We do welcome public sector pension reforms, but there is a deep concern over the unions’ reactions to even these mild proposals. I’m also concerned about the impact of pensions being linked to CPI, and that rock-bottom interest rates and rising inflation may also cause older people problems.

“My final report comment? It would be ‘must try just a little harder – and respect your elders’,” said Dr Altmann.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

Twitter: @Press_Relations

www.saga.co.uk

SAGA PUBLISHES GUIDES TO WORKING LIFE AFTER THE DEFAULT RETIREMENT AGE (DRA) OFFICIALLY ENDS

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

April 11, 2011.

SAGA PUBLISHES GUIDES TO WORKING LIFE AFTER THE DEFAULT RETIREMENT AGE (DRA) OFFICIALLY ENDS – ONE FOR EMPLOYERS, ONE FOR EMPLOYEES.

Video

To download a copy of the Rethinking Retirement guide for Employees please click here.

To download a copy of the Rethinking Retirement guide for Employers please click here.

The now defunct default retirement age has for generations signalled a dead end for older people – but now the challenge is for employers and wannabe-longer-workers is tackling the new lease of life leant by the new rules.

One of the country’s biggest and most experienced over-50s lifestyle groups, Saga, has more appreciation than most about what faces both employees and employers, and has produced online guides aimed at helping both groups.

“It’s not just a moral responsibility to let people work as long as they want, it’s now also a legal responsibility – but both employers and employees may well find the first steps into the unknown to be a bit daunting – so we’ve teamed up with The Age and Employment Network and brought to bear our collective experience to do what we can to help make this an easier cultural transition,” said Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga.

“The end of the default retirement age (DRA) has arrived – and from now on, employers can no longer sack workers just for being 65. At a time when people are living longer and the country faces unprecedented economic challenges, this is only the first step towards rethinking retirement. The UK must nurture a ‘personalised retirement’ culture if the country is to cater for its ageing population,” said Dr Ros Altmann.

“Many people want to work beyond retirement age, saying it keeps their mind alert and that they want to ensure continued income in later life.

“To make sure we do this to the benefit of UK workers, we need to alter our approach and mindset to retirement. This culture change means that the Government must encourage employers to make retirement a process, rather than an event.”

Saga has launched two guides outlining what employers and employees need to think about in this new workplace world.

The guides coincide with the end of the DRA, a move that Saga has warmly welcomed, knowing that many older workers would prefer to continue working than be forced to retire at an arbitrary age.

Dr Ros Altmann said: “We are delighted that the Government abolished the default retirement age. It should have been done years ago. We have been very concerned to see recent cases of employers outrageously forcing their workers in to retirement before the new regime sets in – this is a sheer disgrace.

“For both employers and employees wondering what opportunities and challenges will arise from now on, we hope our Saga Guides to Rethinking Retirement will prove very useful reading.

“We encourage any workers who have been forced to retire from their jobs to look at our guides and to consider their options. There are many alternatives for part time and flexible work open to people over 65 and we encourage people not to give up.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

www.saga.co.uk

IGNORE CALLS FOR DELAY OF DEFAULT RETIREMENT AGE ABOLITION, SAYS ROS ALTMANN.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

December 13, 2010

IGNORE CALLS FOR DELAY OF DEFAULT RETIREMENT AGE ABOLITION, SAYS ROS ALTMANN.

Dr Ros Altmann, Director General of Saga, says calls by business leaders to delay the abolition of the Default Retirement Age should be ignored.

Dr Altmann said: “The Default Retirement Age Should have been abolished years ago.  The timetable must certainly not slip.  Ageism has no place in a modern labour market.  

“Of course it is more convenient for employers to be able to just sack someone for being 65, but that is not fair on the workers themselves.  It is also a huge waste of our national resources.  

“Employers must judge workers fairly. People are not old or 'past it' at 65 any more.  Of course some people are not fit to work, but that applies at much younger ages too and employers will have to adjust their attitudes and assess workers' skills objectively, not on the basis of old-fashioned prejudice.  Most people still have enormous amounts to offer employers.

“Longer working lives are an essential element of overcoming our pensions crisis. The first baby-boomers reach age 65 in 2011 and the demographics mean millions more following in coming years.  

“Their pensions have not worked out in the way they had expected, and they are still fit and healthy.  They would much rather stay on at work than be forced to retire.  If they are forced out of the labour market, they will end up poorer in retirement and that will impact the economy as a whole, as they will have less money to spend.

“Whether or not a worker is suitable for employment should be determined by their skill and ability, not their chronological age.  Employers must be obliged to assess workers' suitability for their jobs on an individual basis, not according to some arbitrary criteria that consigns older workers to a labour market scrapheap on which they do not belong.

“There is a whole new phase of life waiting for workers - a period of years when they work part-time, cutting down gradually rather than suddenly stopping altogether.  

“This is the way forward for employers and the sooner they wake up to the new realities, the better.  Retirement should be a process, not an event, with 'bonus years' of part-time work that allow workers to keep earning and employers to retain their skills.

“Flexible retirement and gradual change in work patterns, or perhaps use of older workers for mentoring, training younger workers in firm-specific skills, job-sharing and so on will all require careful handling, but would be of enormous benefit to employers, employees and society as a whole. Unless people keep working longer, we will all be poorer in future.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

www.saga.co.uk

NOTES
Saga carried out a survey of 14,178 people aged over 50.  85% thought that employees should have the right to a staged retirement.  Our recent research shows that 38% want to continue working past state pension age and more than a third of people who have already retired say they would prefer to be doing some paid work.

HR departments already, in many cases, understand the benefits of employing older workers.  Saga’s own assessment of older workers shows that their performance is not dependent on their age.  Also, employers have made flexible work available for women (for example after childbirth) and such policies can be extended to assist older workers stay in employment after their full-time careers and before full-time retirement

Emma Soames, Saga: retirement age is unnecessary.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10427052.stm

EMMA SOAMES TELLS CHANNEL 4 NEWS: "WE SHOULD ABOLISH DEFAULT RETIREMENT AGE"

Emma Soames: "Abolish default retirement age."

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/politics/domestic_politics/unions+attack+pension+age+rise+to+66/3690377

STOCKPORT COUNTY DEAL SIGNED BY LAW FIRM SAS DANIELS

SAS DANIELS LLP SOLICITORS

PRESS RELEASE

June 18, 2010.

STOCKPORT COUNTY DEAL SIGNED BY SAS DANIELS.

Photo available.

Three departments of SAS Daniels LLP have teamed up to score a winner for Stockport County football club.

The club has been bought from administrators - for an undisclosed sum - by the 2015 Group, a consortium of Cheshire businesses, entrepreneurs and County fans, with SAS Daniels’ corporate & commercial, employment and property teams handling the deal on behalf of the buyers.

The SAS Daniels team included Jeremy Orrell and Lorna Bennett, Corporate & Commercial, and Louise Tobin and Karen Barker, Employment.

“It was complicated, as any deal would be in the circumstances, not just because of the issue of administration, but also because the 2015 Group is buying the club but not the ground,” said Lorna Bennett, Corporate & Commercial, SAS Daniels LLP, Stockport.

“But while every deal is unique, there was actually little in this one that we hadn’t seen before. The crucial aspect was ensuring nothing was missed: commercial matters, movement of shares, employment issues and, of course, the issue of agreements with the owners of the ground itself.

“Nevertheless, it is pretty exciting to be involved in the rebirth of a very visible local icon, and the responsibility for getting the deal right in the eyes of the community and fan base is immense.”

Sean Connolly of the 2015 Group said: “It’s no secret that Stockport County has battled through a challenging sporting and financial end to the season, but this deal provides the club, the players, the fans and the owners with a clean sheet and new start.”

SAS Daniels LLP solicitors has offices in Stockport, Macclesfield, Chester Congleton, and Bramhall and employs 140 people.

Ends

Lorna Bennett photo here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pressrelations/4662702698/in/set-72157623968398711/

Further information:

Iain Macauley or Megan Codling

www.pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800 / 07795 848586

im@pressrelations.co.uk / mc@pressrelations.co.uk / www.sasdaniels.co.uk

EMMA SOAMES
EDITOR-AT-LARGE, SAGA MAGAZINE
PRESS RELEASE
 
June 1, 2010.

 

ABOLISH NATIONAL INSURANCE CONTRIBUTIONS FOR OLDER EMPLOYEES, SAYS OVER-50S CHAMPION.

Raising the default retirement age could backfire and generate massive benefits bills unless the new government convinces business to employ older workers.

“Increasing retirement age and bringing the change forward is all very laudable, but the real issue is getting employers to take on older workers,” said Emma Soames, editor-at-large of Saga Magazine.

“The answer is to abolish NI payments for employers taking on staff aged 60 and over. The risk of not taking action to incentivise employers is a bigger bank of older people qualifying for work over a longer period – and therefore more benefits.

“It is a fact that older people find it harder than other age groups to get back into work if they lose a job. Whichever way you look at it, an employer can find any number of quietly pre-conceived reasons to avoid employing an older person. The government is giving older people more opportunity to work longer when it abolishes the default retirement age, but hasn’t put enough in place to make employers receptive.

“An employer looks at cost, and the price of employing an older person can be made considerably more attractive with a simple elimination of NI payments.”

Ends

Further information:
Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
www.saga.co.uk

Emma Soames, editor-at-large, was editor of Saga Magazine from 2002-2008. Previously she edited the Telegraph Magazine for seven years and before that was editor of ES Magazine, Tatler and the Literary Review.

CHESTER: NEW HEAD OF EMPLOYMENT FOR LAW FIRM SAS DANIELS LLP

SAS DANIELS LLP SOLICITORS

PRESS RELEASE

May 25, 2010.

CHESTER: NEW HEAD OF EMPLOYMENT FOR LAW FIRM SAS DANIELS LLP.

Photo available.

Louise Tobin, one of the North West’s most influential senior lawyers, has taken the role of Head of Employment at the Chester office of law firm SAS Daniels LLP.

Louise, 39, joined SAS Daniels from Slater Heelis Collier Littler (SHCL) in 2009; her arrival gives Chester businesses access to one of the biggest and most experienced employment teams in the region.

“Louise’s appointment in Chester – a new role – means the arrival of vast experience in the city,” said Nigel Haddon, Managing Partner of SAS Daniels LLP.

“While Louise is one of the country’s leading public sector employment issues practitioners, her department brings a much wider array of skills and expertise to support both public and private sector clients in Chester.”

Louise Tobin specialises in equal pay cases, and has worked with many local authorities on employment matters. She will be based at SAS Daniels’ offices in White Friars, Chester.

SAS Daniels LLP solicitors has offices in Stockport, Macclesfield, Chester, Congleton, and Bramhall and employs 140 people.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley or Megan Codling

07788 978800 / 07795 848586

im@pressrelations.co.uk / mc@pressrelations.co.uk / www.sasdaniels.co.uk

BRITAIN’S “SECOND-GENERATION-YUPPIE” GOVERNMENT: WORK HARDER ON OVER-50S BUSINESS CRED.

EMMA SOAMES
EDITOR-AT-LARGE, SAGA MAGAZINE
PRESS RELEASE
 
May 24, 2010.

 

BRITAIN’S “SECOND-GENERATION-YUPPIE” GOVERNMENT: WORK HARDER ON OVER-50S BUSINESS CRED.

Britain’s “second-generation-yuppie” government needs to grow up fast and gain some battle scars if it is to establish credibility with over-50s-dominated big business, says Emma Soames, editor-at-large of Saga Magazine.

The new government has been put in charge of the £1,500 billion business that is UK plc – but the country’s new chief executive, David Cameron, is ten years younger than the average FTSE 350 CEO, and “finance director” George Osborne, at 38, is nine years younger than the average FTSE 100 FD.

“To establish credibility with senior business people and the 21 million over-50s in the UK, the key for the new PM is to spend more time speaking with – and being seen to speak with - Ken Clarke or Vince Cable rather than looking like part of a tribe of yuppies scoping out champagne bars,” said Emma Soames.

“The young govs might be having some fun in the new Parliament, but if we stack up and compare the age and experience stats, then the average age of the country’s ‘board of directors’ is 52 versus 58 for FTSE 350 company directors,” said Emma Soames.

“The average age of a FTSE 350 chief executive is 53, new PM David Cameron is 43; but the frontline directors of UK plc are Cameron, 43, Nick Clegg, 43, George Osborne, 38, and David Laws, 44 – an average age of 42.

“It’s older than me, but the saying ‘you never get a second chance to make a first impression’ needs to become the yuppie front-bencher’s iPad, iPhone or BlackBerry screensaver.

“The enduring early images so far are of the opening press conference double-act laughs between Cameron and Clegg, and some comedic opening scenes of Cameron being ‘reminded’ he was PM at the start of the new Parliament.

“They need to be seen to be having fun in the eyes of the younger elements of the population, but they also need to know when to avoid the laughs and flippancy to establish credibility with a generation who have far more experience of tougher times, and know how seriously the state of the nation should be taken.”

Ends

Further information:
Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
www.saga.co.uk

Emma Soames, editor-at-large, was editor of Saga Magazine from 2002-2008. Previously she edited the Telegraph Magazine for seven years and before that was editor of ES Magazine, Tatler and the Literary Review.

TRAINSPOTTERS TAKE ON THE VOLCANO – AND WIN

MANAGEMENT INTELLIGENCE CONSULTING

PRESS RELEASE

April 21, 2010.

TRAINSPOTTERS TAKE ON THE VOLCANO – AND WIN.

Employees who tackled the Icelandic ash travel crisis head-on and battled their way home and back to work could reap the reward of a huge career boost.

Bridget Biggar, managing director of talent assessment and leadership development organisation Management Intelligence www.miconsulting.co.uk, has described the fallout from the European-wide flight ban as the biggest, toughest and most accurate aptitude test ever.

“My message to employers is to get the gossip going, hear the stories, find out how people dug deep to find a way home and then maybe re-align your opinion of the bolshy and apparently over-confident middle manager or the shrinking accounts clerk: they could be the successors you’re looking for,” said Bridget.

“The approach people take to finding a way back to work, battling through, round over or under the obstacles the European flight ban has created, could be a great indicator of an employee’s true resourcefulness, capability and potential.

“The travel chaos could be, for some people, the greatest thing that has ever happened to them – completely changing their lives and life approach.

“Taking able-bodied, capable, intelligent business people and workers, there’s basically four types of individuals stuck abroad: those who’ll simply sit and wait to be rescued, those who’ll suddenly react out of fear, those who might be described as trainspotters, and those who’ll not stand for any nonsense and will tackle head-on the inconvenience created by the volcano.

“The real dynamos are the resourceful thinkers and risk-takers who relish the challenge of finding a way home, and enjoy it as an adventure. These are the guys who will think laterally to get round obstacles, and will simply find a way. That’s how they conduct their business. Those junior managers who find a way home ahead of the rest are showing signs of being high-fliers and high-achievers.

“They’re the ones who hit the laptop or the phone the second they smell an issue, and are first out of the closed airport and grabbing the initiative, making the judgement call – waiting for nothing or nobody except any group they may be in or have formed – and snatching the first hotel room, cab, bus or train available and making sure they gain position or advantage.

“They think laterally – literally. They’ll quickly gain spatial awareness, understand where they are, and be fast to work out that heading north may not be the best way to actually make big progress north. They’ll examine every option, fast – but they’ll also use their credit card limits as battering rams.

“The ‘trainspotters’ are in their element. They know every rail timetable in Europe - or know where to find them - and will know how to make a travel plan click into place while keeping a tight grip on budget. Knowledge of timetables gives them location awareness. Fantastic organisers, but much maligned for their eccentric enthusiasm. But what they bring is certainty – barring French rail workers’ strikes – which has massive value when people are absorbing huge doses of uncertainty.

“When major obstacles are presented, creativity is key. People who are scared, worried or anxious narrow their field of thinking, but those who relish the challenge of beating something even as big as a volcano find fuel in the thought.

“The risk-averse, with no imagination - will simply sit there, accept what they’re told and wait to be rescued. They’re out-and-out followers in the workplace, with no initiative.

“But there’s also the risk-averse who suddenly spur themselves into doing something because they’re scared of getting into trouble by missing work. This sort of challenge could change their lives because they suddenly discover they have latent potential and capability, and develop a sense of purpose. They’re the true potential winners who will benefit from their Eureka moment.

“Employers could learn more about their staff from the exercise of simply getting home than any amount of assessment in the office. Not everybody is a fantastic communicator, and most people will either massively overstate or modestly understate their belief in themselves in a review.

“But the challenges presented by the flight bans arising from the volcanic ash cloud could, for some people, be the biggest and most accurate psychometric test they’d ever face: dumping somebody in the middle of Europe, the Far East or North America and then telling them to find their way home would be an utterly impractical exercise in the course of normal assessment.

“It may seem like idle office gossip, but employers could do much worse than tap in to the chat about how people stranded abroad during the travel crisis managed to make it home and then to work, and learn from the determination, ingenuity, problem-solving, communication, judgment calls and resourcefulness their staff applied.”

Management Intelligence helps maximise talent, productivity and business success by enhancing the performance delivery of individuals, teams and organisations, driving improved profitability through better business processes and developing employee engagement.

It has offices in London and the Middle East, and is part of All About Brands plc (AAB plc – www.aabplc.com), the brands and marketing services group.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

07788 978800

im@pressrelations.co.uk

www.miconsulting.co.uk

www.aabplc.com

EMPLOYMENT LAWYER: ICELANDIC ASH COULD NULL EVERY EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT IN THE UK

SAS DANIELS LLP

PRESS RELEASE

April 20, 2010.

CHESHIRE EMPLOYMENT LAWYER: ICELANDIC ASH COULD NULL EVERY EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT IN THE UK.

Virtually every employment contract in the UK may have to be torn up and re-written as a consequence of the Icelandic ash crisis.

Cheshire-based employment lawyer Jonathan Whittaker of SAS Daniels LLP, one of the North West’s biggest law firms, said: “There will be barely an employment contract anywhere that makes provision for such a universally insurmountable catastrophe – both employers and employees could be seen to be taking advantage.

“What is unique is that in one fell swoop, those who have been affected by the ash crisis – whether employee or employer – are likely to find themselves in a void, and potentially in dispute, on issues including holiday entitlement, unauthorised absence, overtime and stress.

“Being 24 hours late back from Majorca after French air traffic controllers embark upon their perennial industrial action is one thing, but when some people are told they may have to wait until May for flights back from Los Angeles then that takes matters into an entirely different league.

“There are no contractual terms that allow provision for that sort of out-of-their-hands absence – and while 24 or 48 hours late back might mean a few pulled faces, being two weeks late or more is going to be a severe test of goodwill on the part of the employer.

“There will be the question of just how hard people try to get back to the UK and back to work, and the issue of making up for lost production or clearing of backlogs through overtime.

“When the ash and dust has all settled – literally – the difficulties at the time will be quickly forgotten. Staff will have been using up their holiday entitlement when they may not have wanted to, but employers may say that they never authorised additional holidays and that the employees were absent without permission and just refuse to pay wages.

“After all, the employer may have had to recruit agency staff at extra cost to the business.

“Dismissal is not an option for employers as it is not misconduct, and the length of the time away – assuming reasonable efforts were made to get back - would not justify disciplinary proceedings in my view, unless the employee could be proven to be taking advantage, or shown not to be making every reasonable effort to get to work.

“Employers who are losing money from not having employees there to do the work might be wanting employees to work double hard to make up for lost time. Therefore there may be pressure to do overtime when the employee returns - and this might be very unpopular - there may not be any term in the contract which allows for this and so this may give rise to disagreements.

“However, if the holiday year runs January to December, or, even worse, April to April, it may be a long time before some employees will be able to take another holiday.”

SAS Daniels LLP which has offices in Stockport, Macclesfield, Chester, Congleton and Bramhall.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley or Megan Codling

07788 978800 / 07795 848586

im@pressrelations.co.uk / mc@pressrelations.co.uk / www.sasdaniels.co.uk

STOCKPORT LAWYER: FIT NOTE SYSTEM COMPROMISED BY DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONSHIPS.

SAS DANIELS LLP

PRESS RELEASE

April 08, 2010.

STOCKPORT LAWYER: FIT NOTE SYSTEM COMPROMISED BY DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONSHIPS.

Long-established doctor-patient relationships could compromise the effectiveness of newly-launched “fit note” legislation, says a Stockport lawyer.

The Statement of Fitness for Work is designed to get employees back into the work environment after a period of illness, but leading employment lawyer Jonathan Whittaker says that it will make no difference to addictively workshy staff who have built long-standing relationships with their GP.

“There’s a hard-core of continually questionably ill and injured who are capable of delivering the performance of a heroically incapacitated CSI Miami shooting victim on the stage of the GP’s surgery,” said Jonathan Whittaker, Employment Partner at SAS Daniels LLP, one of the North West’s biggest law firms.

“Over a considerable period they have managed to convince their friendly neighbourhood doctor that they endure a life of marginal health, and pledge to make huge efforts to get to work when they’re ‘well enough’. This is a variation upon the oft-opined brilliance of the criminal mind.

“The vast majority of people deal with illness and injury very openly and honestly – but I am engaged in continual discussion with employers who are handcuffed to a minority of employees who live in an untouchable ill-health limbo in which the alleged patient describes a difficult-to-diagnose condition of being ‘out of sorts’ or having an unidentifiable physical affliction or injury, and who have fine-tuned the art of convincing affrontery if questioned by either employer or doctor.

“In those circumstances, the likelihood of a GP saying their patient is really fit for work if the patient in front of them insists they are not has to be in question.

“Doctors will have to exercise an enormous amount of impartiality, especially where they may have been the patient’s doctor for many years and have perhaps come to view them as being more susceptible to illness than most.

“There is also the complication that GPs will not have any discussion with the employer before filling out the fit note – which means that he or she will have no understanding of the potential roles available within each place of work to be able to suggest alternatives.

“Fit notes will never replace an experienced occupational health report.”

The new fit note is designed to give employees and employers more flexibility in how they deal with sickness absence. This might mean discussing altered hours or a modified work routine. The key is to establish a dialogue between employer, employee and their GP or occupational health specialist.

GPs will be able to offer advice on what work an employee may be able to perform and will be able to suggest adjustments to working arrangements which could be made in order to facilitate an earlier return to work.

Health chiefs say that the isolation brought on by absence from work can lead to stress, depression and anxiety. Getting employees back to work earlier can help promote physical and mental wellbeing and improve organisational effectiveness.

SAS Daniels LLP which has offices in Stockport, Macclesfield, Chester, Congleton and Bramhall.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley or Megan Codling

07788 978800 / 07795 848586

im@pressrelations.co.uk / mc@pressrelations.co.uk / www.sasdaniels.co.uk

EMPLOYMENT LAWYER: FIT NOTE SYSTEM COMPROMISED BY DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONSHIPS

SAS DANIELS LLP

PRESS RELEASE

April 08, 2010.

EMPLOYMENT LAWYER: FIT NOTE SYSTEM COMPROMISED BY DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONSHIPS.

Long-established doctor-patient relationships could compromise the effectiveness of newly-launched “fit note” legislation.

The Statement of Fitness for Work is designed to get employees back into the work environment after a period of illness, but leading employment lawyer Jonathan Whittaker says that it will make no difference to addictively workshy staff who have built long-standing relationships with their GP.

“There’s a hard-core of continually questionably ill and injured who are capable of delivering the performance of a heroically incapacitated CSI Miami shooting victim on the stage of the GP’s surgery,” said Jonathan Whittaker, Employment Partner at SAS Daniels LLP, one of the North West’s biggest law firms.

“Over a considerable period they have managed to convince their friendly neighbourhood doctor that they endure a life of marginal health, and pledge to make huge efforts to get to work when they’re ‘well enough’. This is a variation upon the oft-opined brilliance of the criminal mind.

“The vast majority of people deal with illness and injury very openly and honestly – but I am engaged in continual discussion with employers who are handcuffed to a minority of employees who live in an untouchable ill-health limbo in which the alleged patient describes a difficult-to-diagnose condition of being ‘out of sorts’ or having an unidentifiable physical affliction or injury, and who have fine-tuned the art of convincing affrontery if questioned by either employer or doctor.

“In those circumstances, the likelihood of a GP saying their patient is really fit for work if the patient in front of them insists they are not has to be in question.

“Doctors will have to exercise an enormous amount of impartiality, especially where they may have been the patient’s doctor for many years and have perhaps come to view them as being more susceptible to illness than most.

“There is also the complication that GPs will not have any discussion with the employer before filling out the fit note – which means that he or she will have no understanding of the potential roles available within each place of work to be able to suggest alternatives.

“Fit notes will never replace an experienced occupational health report.”

The new fit note is designed to give employees and employers more flexibility in how they deal with sickness absence. This might mean discussing altered hours or a modified work routine. The key is to establish a dialogue between employer, employee and their GP or occupational health specialist.

GPs will be able to offer advice on what work an employee may be able to perform and will be able to suggest adjustments to working arrangements which could be made in order to facilitate an earlier return to work.

Health chiefs say that the isolation brought on by absence from work can lead to stress, depression and anxiety. Getting employees back to work earlier can help promote physical and mental wellbeing and improve organisational effectiveness.

SAS Daniels LLP which has offices in Stockport, Macclesfield, Chester, Congleton and Bramhall.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley or Megan Codling

07788 978800 / 07795 848586

im@pressrelations.co.uk / mc@pressrelations.co.uk / www.sasdaniels.co.uk