Starting a new job whist on sick leave.

LabLover2

Hi all,

My work is making me so stressed and down. I have handed in my notice and now have been signed off by the doctor due to stress for 3 weeks. I am awating a call from my current employer to see if i can now leave with out notice to being on the sick. Can i start my new job whilst beeing signed off sick if my current employment contract is canceled?

Thanks in advance x

Ozzuk

I think you'd need to ask your doctor to amend their note to say you may be fit for work - otherwise it could cause insurance issues for new employer. Ie, you shouldn't be in work if doctor said you aren't fit enough.

I don't work in HR but I have just gone through this with a member of staff.

asajj

As said, you shouldn't be at your new office if you have a sick note.
Also you are still employed by your previous one so I don't think you can start a new job.
Talk to them and sort it and then talk to your doctor.

Aquamania

LabLover2 wrote: »

Hi all,

My work is making me so stressed and down. I have handed in my notice and now have been signed off by the doctor due to stress for 3 weeks. I am awating a call from my current employer to see if i can now leave with out notice to being on the sick. Can i start my new job whilst beeing signed off sick if my current employment contract is canceled?

Thanks in advance x

Does the 3 weeks sick note cover the remaining period of notice?

If so, I would have thought the current employer would be keen to agree to an early termination of your employment if that is what you want. (Although they would not be obligated to).

I wouldn't have thought your new employer would allow you to start work if you are currently sick.

You weren't thinking of attempting to start work with this new employer whilst hiding from them the fact you have been instructed by your doctor you are currently unfit for work, were you?

Undervalued

Aquamania wrote: »

You weren't thinking of attempting to start work with this new employer whilst hiding from them the fact you have been instructed by your doctor you are currently unfit for work, were you?

The phrase would be ADVISED to refrain from work. Except for certain notifiable diseases a doctor has no power to instruct his patient to do anything!

In any case there is no guarantee the doctor would give the same advice for a different job.

Also a fit note (formally a sick note) is not actually binding on either party. People often like to claim it is illegal to work if you have one - it is not. There may, under some circumstances be a contractual requirement not to and it might have insurance implications for the employer although this is often exaggerated.

Aquamania

Undervalued wrote: »

The phrase would be ADVISED to refrain from work. Except for certain notifiable diseases a doctor has no power to instruct his patient to do anything!

In any case there is no guarantee the doctor would give the same advice for a different job.

Also a fit note (formally a sick note) is not actually binding on either party. People often like to claim it is illegal to work if you have one - it is not. There may, under some circumstances be a contractual requirement not to and it might have insurance implications for the employer although this is often exaggerated.

Pedant alert!

I know a sick note is not binding as 149 others found out to their cost/lives thanks to a certain Andreas Lubitz

SeduLOUs

If you are getting paid SSP from the first job and then start work for a second, you 'could' be heading into benefit fraud type territory.

It does depend on the jobs though - if you can't work as a builder for one company because you've broken your leg, but you can still work on a reception for another you're probably OK, but if the jobs are very similar in nature you could be on shaky ground.

The cleanest way would be to get fully out of the contract from your first job, and then get the doctor to issue a new fit note to say that you are OK to start a new job.