Employers criticise GPs for inadequate support when managing people off work with mental health problems

12 November 2007

Employers are calling for a radical revamp of the way in which GPs work to help people with mental health problems successfully return to work. The call comes from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), and is based on findings in the latest CIPD / KPMG quarterly Labour Market Outlook report. The report will be launched at an event today (Monday 12 November) in Parliament.

The report finds that GPs are typically rated negatively by employers for the level of support they provide in helping people with mental health problems return to work. Almost 40% of employers rate GP support in this area as either very poor or fairly poor compared to only 20% who rate GP support as good or very good.

The survey also show that currently employers receive medical reports from GPs on just 50% of employees off work with long term mental health problems, even though seven in ten employers report they contact GPs to ask them to provide such a report.

In light of these findings it is not surprising that employers supported a range of proposals for revamping how GPs services are delivered. These included:
• A revamped Med 3 Sicknote including more information on phased return to work – 77% of employers thought this would be effective or fairly effective
• Improved training for GPs on “fitness for work” issues – 77% of respondents rated this proposal as effective or fairly effective
• Changes to GPs contracts to incentivise closer working with patients’ employers and provision of advice on phased return to work – supported by 70% of respondents as effective or fairly effective
• Employment advisers in GP surgeries – supported by 60% of HR practitioners as likely to be effective compared to 13% who thought the opposite
• An electronic sick note system to provide faster and clearer communication between GPs and employers – 52% rated this proposal as likely to effective or fairly effective, although 20% rated this proposal as ineffective or fairly ineffective.

Ben Willmott, CIPD Employee Relations Adviser, said:
“GPs are letting down patients signed off work with mental health problems by not communicating effectively with employers. All the evidence shows that a phased return to work can play a hugely beneficial role in the recovery of people suffering with this kind of illness. Employers are willing to do their bit, but they need support and better communication from GPs to facilitate appropriately phased returns to work.

“All too often the reality today is a quickly scribbled note signing someone off for another period of weeks. This can contribute to long-term sickness absence, and often to extended periods on incapacity benefits.

“We know the Department for Work and Pensions is already looking at ways of improving the support GPs offer to facilitate timely and effective returns to work. Our report shows widespread employer support for measures that would make a real difference. If government wants to achieve its objectives on welfare reform, it must act to ensure GPs are fully aware of the crucial role they have to play in working with employers to prevent people slipping in to long-term sickness absence.”

Employer attitudes:
The survey also looked at existing employer experiences of employing people with mental ill-health problems. Half of employers (52%) said they had no experience of hiring people with a history of mental ill-health. Previous CIPD research into recruitment of the core jobless found that almost one in five employers (18%) exclude people with mental health conditions when recruiting to their organisation. The encouraging news from this survey is that of employers who have hired from this group, nearly two-thirds (61%) rated their experience as positive, as compared to only 15% who had had a negative experience.

Julie Bennett, Health and Well-Being Manager at KPMG, said:
“Mental ill-health is clearly still not properly understood. But this research shows that the majority of employers who have employed people with a history of mental ill-health have had a positive experience, with only a small minority reporting a negative experience. Good employers are demonstrating high levels of responsibility in this area, with many playing a positive role in the return to work of people who’ve had time off with mental health conditions. However, there is clearly now a need for more dialogue with the medical profession to give those people with mental ill-health the support they need.”

Other findings from the report:
Employers backed various measures to help Government achieve its targets for getting more people with a history of mental ill-health off welfare and back into work, including:
• Voluntary work placements or employment trials (backed by 55%)
• Training grants to help assess the skills needs of incapacity benefit claimants (backed by 46%)

Amongst job applicants, honesty on pre-employment health questionnaires appears to be a concern:
• One in ten employers has withdrawn a job offer in the past year because an applicant had lied or misrepresented their health situation on a health-screening questionnaire.
• Almost as many (7%) have dismissed someone after their employment had commenced for the same reason.

ends

Notes to editors:
• The CIPD / KPMG quarterly Labour Market Outlook tracks the state of the UK labour market, particularly looking at recruitment, redundancy and pay intentions. Each report also contains a “Focus” section looking at an issue of topical interest. This quarter’s survey generated responses from 625 employers.

• The report is being launched at an event in the Thatcher Room, Portcullis House, House of Commons, at 1pm on Monday 12 November. Speakers at the event include Caroline Flint, Minister of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, Professor Lord Layard, John Philpott and Ben Willmott from the CIPD, and Julie Bennett from KPMG.

• For an advance copy of the report, please contact the CIPD press office on 020 8612 6400, or email h.smith@cipd.co.uk

• The report will be available online at www.cipd.co.uk/labourmarketoutlook from Monday 12 November.

• The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has over 130,000 members and is the leading professional institute for those involved in the management and development of people.

CIPD press enquiries:
Gerwyn Davies / Hannah Smith / Robert Blevin
CIPD Press Office
151 The Broadway, London SW19 1JQ
Tel: 020 8612 6400
Mobile: 07793 256 763

KPMG press enquiries:
Gavin Houlgate
Tel: 020 7694 3902
Mobile: +44 (0) 7795 290855
gavin.houlgate@kpmg.co.uk

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