NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin have been notified that following consultation with national stakeholders including NHS England and Improvement (NHSEI), NHS Employers, trade union and employer colleagues, the government has decided that now is the right time to withdraw the staff terms and conditions section of the COVID-19 workforce guidance. This decision follows the government’s publication of its plans for living with COVID-19, which saw the withdrawal of all restrictions and will facilitate the move back to normal contractual arrangements.

The guidance was withdrawn on 7 July 2022 with an implementation timetable through to September. This includes the removal of full pay for staff who are unwell with a COVID-19 sickness absence

The process of withdrawing the guidance, while ensuring staff who are currently unwell with COVID-19 are fully supported, is a priority.

The staff terms and conditions section of the COVID-19 guidance will be withdrawn in its entirety. This includes:

• Access to full sick pay for new episodes of COVID-19 sickness
• Access to COVID-19 special leave for the purposes of self-isolation.

We will be meeting with all affected staff who are currently off with COVID-19 or long COVID to inform and support their transition back to their contractual sick pay arrangements, to take effect from 1 September 2022.

Staff who were in receipt of COVID-19 sick pay as a result of being unwell prior to 7 July, and continue to be unwell, will be transitioned back to their normal contractual sick pay entitlements unless they have already returned to work.

Any period of sickness paid as COVID-19 sick pay, regardless of length, will not count in the aggregation of previous absences for the purposes of calculating entitlement to contractual sick pay.

From this date, all staff, regardless of their reason for sickness absence, will be paid in line with their normal contractual sick pay arrangements.

Should you have any queries, please do not hesitate contact Lewis Dorrian, HR Advisor –  l.dorrian@nhs.net or Zena Richards, HR Business Partner – zena.richards1@nhs.net