Manage absence and sickness

Good businesses ensure they have appropriate systems in place to manage unexpected staff absence. Such absences affect productivity and profits and, if they become a regular occurrence, are likely to lower morale and motivation.

However, you can improve absence rates and minimise the impact of absence by putting effective policies and procedures in place. These should be backed up by agreeable working conditions, active management and good motivation.

Monitoring and investigating the causes of absence can also help you identify factors contributing to absence levels, eg unsafe work practices.

This guide will help you to understand the causes of unexpected absence, monitor and measure the effect of absence rates, and set up the right policies and procedures to control it.

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The need for absence and sickness policies and procedures

Having an absence and sickness policy can bring clear business benefits including:

• lower insurance costs
• higher rates of staff retention and motivation
• improved productivity, profitability and morale

You may also find that the reputation of your business is improved and that this in turn aids recruitment.

From a management point of view, having an absence and sickness policy can help you to:

• prevent small problems developing into larger ones
• measure and monitor absence – see the page in this guide on measuring and monitoring absence and sickness
• identify and tackle underlying problems, such as poor working conditions, work-life balance issues, conflict at work or lack of adequate training/career development

Monitoring reasons for unexpected absences is just one of the ways that you can promote the health and well-being of employees. For more information, see the page on employee health and well-being: what you can do in our guide on how to improve employee health and well-being.

You may find that monitoring reasons for absences makes it easier for you to identify and deal with different types of absence appropriately.

For example, you should treat a worker on long-term sick leave differently to one who has drug/alcohol addiction and differently again to a worker who regularly calls in sick on a Friday.

See the pages in this guide on employee absence as a capability issue and on employee absence as a conduct issue.

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Basic principles of managing absence and sickness

There are a number of steps you should take to manage unexpected absence and sickness effectively:

• Produce clear written procedures for reporting absence.
• Include terms in employees’ contracts of employment giving you express permission to hold absence records.
• Accurately record and monitor absence.
• Train managers on how to handle absence.
• Set targets for absence levels.
• Conduct return-to-work interviews after absences, interviewing sensitively to find out if there are underlying causes, eg domestic problems.
• Provide for special equipment if appropriate, eg ergonomic chairs for employees with back problems. For advice, information and possible grants, read about Access to Work in our guide on support if you employ someone who is disabled.
• Check the attendance records of applicants during recruitment.
• Provide opportunities for discussing problems relating to attendance in performance appraisals.
• Develop other initiatives to encourage good attendance, eg improvement of working conditions, introduction of flexible working, provision of counselling and healthcare/prevention facilities.

See the pages in this guide on what to include in absence and sickness policies and measuring and monitoring absence and sickness.

Statement of fitness for work – the ‘fit note’

A statement of fitness for work (also known as a ‘fit note’) is a medical statement that doctors issue to patients whose health condition affects their ability to work.

Doctors may only issue a fit note after seven calendar days of sickness absence. For sickness absences of seven calendar days or fewer, employees can self certify.

A statement of fitness for work allows a doctor to advise one of two options:

• that the patient is unfit for work
• that they may be fit for work if appropriate support is available

In the latter case, the doctor will advise on the effects of the patient’s health condition and, if appropriate, what changes you, as the patient’s employer, could make – in agreement with the employee – to help them get back to work as part of their recovery.

While you don’t have to act on the doctor’s advice, the statement may help you make simple and practical adjustments to help your staff return to work and reduce unnecessary sickness absence.

Regardless of what a statement says, you must still make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees under the disability provisions in the Disability Discrimination Act.

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Measuring and monitoring absence and sickness

Setting up procedures for measuring absence and sickness in the workplace allows you to find out:

• how much working time has been lost
• where absence occurs the most, eg among particular types of worker or department
• how often individual workers are absent
• whether there is a pattern of absence, eg where a worker regularly calls in sick on a Friday

It will also show whether the absence is:

• due to short-term sickness and certificated
• due to short-term sickness and uncertificated
• due to long-term sickness
• not sickness-related and authorised
• not sickness-related, but unauthorised

With this information, you should be able to take the appropriate action to improve the situation.

Reasons for unauthorised absence can be:

• personal, eg due to marital problems
• work-related, eg due to verbal abuse from customers or heavy workloads and, in turn, increased levels of stress

Consider improving such conditions by:

• examining job design
• using temporary staff during busy periods
• developing policies and procedures to tackle anti-social behaviour against public-facing staff
• offering flexible working patterns, training and promotion opportunities, staff incentives, etc

See the page on employee health and well-being: what you can do in our guide on how to improve employee health and well-being.

Return-to-work interviews can be an effective way of collecting absence data. Carried out sensitively, they can help establish:

• if there is a hidden real reason for a worker’s absence, eg workplace bullying or domestic problems
• if they are ready to return

Keeping sickness and absence records

The only sickness and absence-related information you must keep by law is for the purposes of paying statutory sick pay – see the page on record keeping and forms for statutory sick pay in our guide: understand statutory sick pay when paying it.

In order to hold more detailed absence records – eg for the purposes of monitoring absence levels – you need workers’ permission as this information is sensitive personal data. You can achieve this by setting out the policy in the terms and conditions of employment.

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What to include in absence and sickness policies

You should develop your absence and sickness policy/procedures in consultation with line managers and workplace representatives.

An absence and sickness policy could include the following:

• When time off might be permitted, eg jury service leave and time off for emergencies involving dependants. See our guide on allowing time off work.
• How the worker should notify you if they are ill, or going to be late for work or absent for other reasons, eg because a dependent has had an accident or fallen ill.
• When they should submit a medical statement from their doctor or self certify their illness. Note that under statutory sick pay rules, self certification is only required from the fourth day, and a medical statement from the eighth day, of an absence.
• Statutory – and any contractual – sick pay arrangements. This should also be covered in each employee’s written statement of employment particulars.
• Possible procedures for using the employer’s own doctor/medical adviser.
• If applicable, the need to attend a return-to-work interview.
• Consequences of not complying with the policy, eg when disciplinary measures will be taken.
• Who is responsible for keeping attendance records.
• Reference to any other relevant policies, eg alcohol/drug misuse, health and safety, discipline and grievance, annual leave, maternity/adoption/paternity/parental leave.

You may also want to include the following points:

• If you have good reason to believe an employee is abusing the system, you may begin disciplinary action against them.
• While you will treat those who fall ill sympathetically, excessive sickness can result in dismissal. For information on dealing with employee illness fairly, see the page in this guide on employee absence as a capability issue.

There are other options you may want to consider, including:

• offering a counselling service
• setting up rehabilitation programmes for long-term sickness
• offering attendance bonuses or incentives – make sure these don’t discriminate, eg against those who are disabled, pregnant or working part time
• appointing an absence case manager

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Employee absence as a capability issue

An employee may become incapable of doing their job to the required standard because they are genuinely suffering from either of the following:

• long-term ill health and therefore they don’t attend work for a long period of time
• frequent bouts of short-term sickness and they are therefore unable to attend work regularly

In either of these circumstances, you should treat any absence as a capability issue and:

• deal with the situation sensitively
• investigate, measure and monitor the employee’s absence record
• consult them regularly to find out about their health and likelihood of return to work
• set time limits on assessing the situation and tell the employee
• let them know if their job is at risk, and why
• obtain medical reports – although you’ll need their permission
• consider adjustments to their job to allow them to return to work and/or do their job more easily

To avoid an unfair dismissal claim, only dismiss as a last resort. Make sure you have followed fair and proper procedures. See our guide on dismissal.

Keep in mind the following:

• Check if the illness amounts to a disability – if so, you may need to make reasonable adjustments so that the employee can carry out their job. For the definition of disability, see our guide on how to prevent discrimination and value diversity.
• Discount any periods of absence related to a pregnancy-related illness when taking action over someone’s absence record. For the rights of pregnant employees, see our guide on pregnancy at work.
• An eligible employee may be entitled to statutory sick pay for up to 28 weeks – as well as any contractual sick pay. See our guide on pay – an overview of obligations.

Jobcentre Plus offers a wide range of services to support employers who want to help disabled people stay in work and use their skills and talents. For more information, see our guide on support if you employ someone who is disabled.

Absence related to drugs and alcohol

Treat employees addicted to drugs or alcohol similarly to employees with any other serious illness. However, if an employee won’t accept they have a problem or seek help, the issue may become one of unacceptable conduct.

Where the issue is purely one of conduct, ie the employee is not addicted to alcohol or drugs but their drug/alcohol consumption is leading to regular absence/lateness, you should consider subjecting them to your disciplinary procedure.

See the page in this guide on employee absence as a conduct issue.

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Employee absence as a conduct issue

Where an employee is often absent or late for unexplained/unconvincing reasons, this becomes a conduct issue and you may wish to take disciplinary action.

Be aware though that sickness, domestic problems or travel difficulties leading to absence or lateness may not necessarily amount to misconduct. In cases of genuine sickness, particularly if the sickness is pregnancy related, you should not take disciplinary action. See the page in this guide on employee absence as a capability issue.

Investigations before taking disciplinary action

Prior to taking disciplinary action, you could:

• ask absent employees to phone in at or by a given time each day
• ensure line managers follow up any unexplained absence
• conduct return-to-work interviews

Where employees are finding it difficult to manage home and work responsibilities, consider introducing flexible working arrangements.

Note that eligible employees have the right to request flexible working.

You must consider such requests seriously – see our guide on flexible working – the law and best practice.

Taking disciplinary action

The employee should – except in the most serious of cases – be given an opportunity to improve. Usually warnings, both oral and written, are sufficient.

If the situation does not improve, you may have to consider dismissal, but only as a last resort and after you’ve followed proper and fair procedures. See our guide on disciplinary procedures, hearings and appeals.

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Employee absence due to conflict at work

An employee may be absent because of conflict at work.

This absence could either be in the form of sick leave or unauthorised and unexplained.

With any type of absence the employee may telephone you to explain what has caused it, or you may have to call the employee instead.

If you find out that an employee’s absence is being caused by a conflict at work, you need to take steps to resolve it.

However, the employee might just tell you that they are suffering from depression or stress. If so, you should try to find out – if it’s not immediately clear – the underlying cause.

With unauthorised absence, the employee may be reluctant to tell you why they are absent, ie they might either avoid giving you an explanation or give you an explanation that you find unconvincing. In either case, you should arrange a return-to-work interview with the employee to find out the underlying cause of their absence.

If the employee continues to take periods of unauthorised absence, you may treat it as a conduct issue and apply your disciplinary procedure. You may find that, during a disciplinary hearing, the employee raises a grievance relating to a conflict at work that has ultimately led to their absence. If this happens, you should suspend the disciplinary process in order to deal with the grievance.

See our guides on disciplinary procedures, hearings and appeals and handling grievances.

Return-to-work interviews

Whenever an employee returns to work after a long period of absence, you should hold a return-to-work interview with them.

As part of the discussion, you can:

• welcome the employee back
• check they are well enough to be at work
• update them on any news while they were absent
• ask them about the cause of their absence

You may find that they were absent because of a conflict at work. For example:

• they have an ongoing disagreement with a peer or their manager
• they are being bullied or harassed by a colleague, client or customer
• before their absence, you had called them to a meeting on an unrelated disciplinary matter, eg to discuss their performance or conduct
• there is a dispute between groups of workers
• there is a dispute between a group of workers and management over, for example, pay or conditions, which may have already led – or may lead in future – to industrial action

If so, you need to take steps to deal with the conflict. See our guide on managing conflict.

If you are already aware that the absence was caused by a conflict at work, you should inform the employee about the steps that you have taken to resolve it. They should also have a clear understanding of what may happen if they continue to be absent from work.

Continuing absence during a disciplinary procedure

If you think an employee’s continuing absence is itself due to a forthcoming disciplinary hearing and, as a result, they fail to attend it, you should:

• rearrange the date of the meeting
• warn the employee that, if they fail to attend again, you could make your decision on the matter in their absence

If the employee repeatedly fails to attend rearranged hearings, you need to consider all the facts and come to a reasonable decision on how to proceed.

Considerations may include:

• any rules you have for dealing with failure to attend disciplinary meetings
• the seriousness of the disciplinary issue under consideration
• the employee’s disciplinary record (including current warnings), general work record, work experience, position and length of service
• medical opinion on whether the employee is fit to attend the meeting
• how you have dealt with similar cases in the past

However, eventually you will be entitled to reach your disciplinary decision in their absence, whether it’s a warning, action short of dismissal such as demotion, or even dismissal itself.

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Employee absence due to bad weather

Bad weather – particularly heavy snow – and the resulting transport problems can lead to a large number of employees being absent from or late for work.

To reduce the impact of the bad weather, you should plan ahead. For example, think about issues such as alternative working patterns or who can cover at short notice.

It’s also a good idea to include a section on bad weather in your absence policy so that you and your staff know what to do when these situations arise.

Flexible working

It’s worth considering a more flexible approach to matters such as location – you could allow employees to work from home/remotely if, for example, all or most of their work is done using a computer with an internet connection.

Pay issues

You do not have to pay an employee if, because of bad weather:

• they are unable to get to work
• they are late for work (unless the travel itself is part of their working time or – in some situations – where you provide the transport)

However, you may have to pay an employee if:

• the right to payment is set out in their contract of employment or a collective agreement
• it’s become custom and practice for you to do so in these circumstances

You could also consider paying staff on a discretionary basis for travel disruption.

Dealing with absence issues fairly

Even if your business is damaged by the effects of absent workers, make sure that any disciplinary action you take is carried out according to proper and fair procedure.

This will help maintain good, fair and consistent employment relations and help prevent complaints to employment tribunals.

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CASE STUDY

Here’s how I reduced absence rates in my business

Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) is a not-for-profit property management company based in Rochdale, Lancashire. The organisation manages over 14,000 council homes on behalf of Rochdale Council and has around 650 employees. Personnel manager Elaine Taylor explains how introducing proactive measures to monitor and improve staff attendance has almost halved absence levels and contributed to a healthier and more motivated workforce.

What I did

Tackle the issue head-on

“Six years ago, when RBH was created from one of the old Rochdale Council departments, absenteeism was running at 18 days per employee per year. It was clear to the new management team that while there was an absence policy in place, it wasn’t being fully adhered to. Reporting procedures were inconsistent, communication was patchy and the information available to managers was poor.

“We knew that overhauling the system wouldn’t happen overnight, so before we evaluated longer-term options, we took some immediate action to stem the tide. The main thing was to tighten up the application of existing procedures. Line managers were given frontline responsibility, making it mandatory for absent employees to speak directly to their manager and to attend a back-to-work interview on their return. This sent a clear message that we were taking absence seriously and rates began to drop.”

Review the system

“Once we had started to regain control, we undertook a thorough review of the absence policy and procedures. Assessing costs against potential benefits, we identified a range of solutions that would supplement the improvements we’d already made. One of these was to introduce an externally managed nurse-led helpline. Employees now call our service provider’s contact centre to report a sickness absence to a qualified nurse, who provides immediate advice, then follows up as appropriate to monitor the illness. All the details are fed back online to our managers, giving them a level and quality of information that wasn’t previously available.

“The second step was to review and change the ‘trigger’ point at which formal action would begin, in line with sector benchmarks. The third step was the introduction of a basic healthcare plan for all employees. We were concerned about the potential cost, but following research, we joined a scheme run by our local Chamber of Commerce, which proved extremely cost-effective.

“At all stages, we were careful to consult fully with staff and unions and to communicate new procedures as clearly as possible. We also began including absence as a topic in all inductions and introduced monitoring, with monthly reports and regular meetings to review long-term absence cases and analyse absence patterns.”

Make employee health a priority

“As each new measure was implemented, we saw a positive effect on absence rates and morale, which inspired us to do even more. We have gradually introduced a series of additional health initiatives, such as health promotion events and self-care training courses, run with help from the NHS. We also actively thank employees for good attendance – including a £50 gift voucher for every employee with a 100 per cent attendance record – and highlight improvements made via our corporate newsletter.

“There have been costs involved in the new system, but they’re easy to justify when you offset them against the greater costs of lost productivity. On balance, we calculate that we’ve saved about £200,000 per year.

“Overall, the benefits of prioritising employee well-being on top of effective absence management have been considerable. Productivity has increased, staff feel more valued and motivated and teams are under less stress because they’re not constantly having to cover for absences. It’s taken time and commitment to change the culture, but our absence rates are now down to less than ten days per employee per year.”

What I’d do differently

Streamline data compilation

“When we first introduced the new system, we were still compiling sickness returns for payroll purposes using clock cards. This was extremely time-consuming and looking back, we should have tackled that sooner. It was a year before we streamlined the process – now all the data is pulled together by our service provider.”

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