Sick leave, injured while on holiday

TyreLever

Had an accident on a prebooked holiday that prevented me from working. Had to take a few weeks off. After returning to work I was told that due to the fact that my sick leave was directly before or after a holiday, it is possible the company will treat it as me extending my holiday, regardless of reasons. In this particular case no action was taken. But generally, what is the legal position on this? What actions can an employer take against employees who are injured or become sick on holiday?

I am an adventurous sort, so logically I could be more likely to have an accident when on a holiday due to the nature of my hobbies.

nicechap

Was sick leave supported by a doctors note or self certificates?

Where I work, if you are sick whilst on leave & it's supported by a certificate, the annual leave is recredited to you as you aren't on holiday, you are sick (for want of a better word).

Edited to add, there's a world of difference between coming back late from holiday with a hangover and not going in compared to a broken leg from skiing accident. Context can be important as well as what you or your friends post on Facebook about your holiday injury/ sickness.

Tigsteroonie

Did you notify your employer of your accident, and need for sick leave, at the earliest opportunity - the same as you would have done had you not been on holiday?

Or did you wait until the end of your period of holiday before letting your employer know?

sangie595

If we are talking about generic answers, then the answer is yes - an employer can decide that an injury is "self-inflicted"and caused by a lack of personal care. It isn't common, but I have seen employers do this, and refuse company sick pay; on one occasion the employer refused sick pay altogether and won their case. So it is certainly lawful to do it. The extent to which that is the case would depend on individual cases. In most cases I know of it has applied where someone undertakes high risk activities, rather than the normal run of the mill holiday activities. And in a couple of cases people were refused sick pay after continuing activities that they had been medically advised not to do. One of these was simply playing football - but the doctor had told the individual that continuing to play was a high risk of injury due to underlying conditions.

The holiday thing is a bit of a red herring though - it doesn't matter whether you are on holiday or not. It's the actions and activities that give rise to it. In the footballers case, they weren't on holiday. They just refused to stop playing.

TyreLever

I had a doctors note. I notified them as soon as I could. I also didnt convert my holiday to sick leave. My accident occurred about halfway through my holiday so Im not bothered about that. Dont use facebook or other such websites.