I haven't been on holiday, just working. This has been a fairly bad week. I had to sack a number of the waiting staff, I had previously explained to all staff that Saturday nights function was just about the most important event of the year, at the last minute some of them decided they had other things to do on the night, after promising themselves to work, well, they've now got every night to do whatever they want. Then I hired a chef, he seemed ok, good at his work, pleasant enough, but............last Saturday, with 120 evening meals booked in, he didn't arrive for work, no explanation. Eventually he got in touch, explaining that he had had an accident at home and spent two days in hospital, I took him at his word, being a trusting soul (this may change though). He returned to work on Tuesday, I was by now shattered, having done four 14+ hour shifts in a row, doing the work of two people, all seemed to be well. Wednesday, he phones to say he's "running a bit late", and that's all I hear from him all day. With two dinner parties booked, plus people in all day for breakfast, lunch and afternoon teas I'm rushed off my feet all day. I do find time to do one thing though, I place a call to the hospital where he spent Saturday and Sunday, surprise, surprise, they've never heard of him, they say neither was he admitted or passed through casualty. Thursday, he phones to apologise for Wednesday, and to say that he will be back at work that afternoon, I ask him to bring a doctors note and explain that the hospital claim he wasn't there when he said he was, he puts the phone down, and that's the last I've heard from him. The law as regards self certification for illness is a joke, currently an employee can self certificate for 8 working days, let's count that up, you fall ill on a Monday, stay off until Friday, you're still poorly on the following Monday and finally return to work on Thursday. You claim your 8 working days, but including the weekend you have now been ill for 10 days, in my opinion, anyone ill for that long needs to see a doctor, that's not a head cold, that's a serious illness. Self certification is a skivers license, you could book a weeks holiday in Spain, fly away, come back, self certificate and tell the boss that your healthy tan came from spending some time on your sunbed, that's right, the uv light made your poorly tummy feel better. The old 3 day self certification was perfectly reasonable, if you really are so poorly that you can not physically get to work on the 4th day you see a doctor, if you really are poorly he supplies you with a note. The law was changed not from pressure from employers, obviously, but because of pressure from overworked doctors, who claimed that constantly having to see sick people and write doctors notes was getting in the way of playing golf and driving their top of the range soft top mercedes (with the personalised number plates). apologies for being a bit bah humbug, and for the lack of posts, abnormal service will resume if and when I can get some more staff.