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'Fit note' plan is welcomed
A LEADING Sheffield employment lawyer has welcomed plans to replace the traditional "sick note" with a new "fit note" that details the sort of duties an employee can undertake after recovering from an illness.
Diarmuid Deeney partner in Halliwells' Sheffield office believes the new system is good news for the region's employers but warns that it won't be a panacea to the widespread issue of sickness leave in the UK
"The cost of ill-health to the British economy is around 100 billion so in these challenging times it is more important than ever that we do something positive to tackle it.
"The previous sick note system was very black and white, you could either work or you couldn't. The new 'fit note' allows GPs to recommend work activities that their patients can do and will help people stay in work or return to work quicker."
Mr Deeney said it was important not to stigmatise people who were genuinely too ill to work and employers needed to be aware that the new "Fit Note" wouldn't cure the problem of sickness in the workplace.
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Weather for Sheffield
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
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Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 21 C
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