21
July
2022
In her quarterly GCMA Know How update, Golf HR’s Carolyne Wahlen looked at new legislation that came into force at the start of this month... Fit notes certifying sickness absence can now not only be issued by GPs but by registered nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, and occupational therapists, human resources expert Carolyne Wahlen has revealed. In her quarterly update in a GCMA Know How webinar, she discussed the measures implemented on July 1 to help relieve the pressure on GPs. You can read more about the changes here. The Golf HR chief said: “The problem is that the Government, as always, has said ‘this is a great idea’ and done no training for any of those other people. “A pharmacist, certainly one in our village, has already put up a sign saying ‘no, we cannot issue fit notes’, because not all of them can. “We have a physiotherapist, who's one of our clients, and she's been contacting her professional bodies to find out what the criteria are they have to adhere to. There is no guidance at all.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2eNub7kIc4 Carolyne said the industry was awaiting the first fit note to arrive from a non-GP and then she would be able to advise GCMA members on what that looked like and how it worked. She also talked about digital solutions for fit notes that arrived in April and added: “It’s really easy now to falsify sick notes and you can buy them for £11 on the internet. “They get sent to you physically so that you've got the right paper…and you can have any criteria you want. You tell them what you want to be sick with and they will do it.” But Carolyne said: “You are allowed to go to your GP, or whoever has issued, and say ‘can you please confirm that you did do this’ and they have to engage with you. That is a criteria. It always has been but it’s going to be more so now.” For more on the new sickness rules and for discrimination advice, watch the webinar embedded in this video, or click here. Full GCMA Members can access a dedicated employment helpline as part of their membership benefits package and which is provided by Golf HR. For more details, click here. Do you subscribe to the GCMA's weekly E-newsletter? Make sure you're not missing out on the latest in the world of golf club management. Click here to join in. Please LOGIN to read the full article.
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