Managing short term sickness absence

Strategies and tips on how to

• manage short term sickness absence in

your organisation, minimising risk

• managing your workforce during

pandemic

Here are a few key reasons

• impact on patient safety and service delivery

• financial costs

• impact on the organisation – colleagues and

patients

• duty of care to employees

Remember the employment contract is two way

– employees are contractually obliged to attend

work regularly

CIPD annual absence survey 2013 (public

sector)

• 8.7 days sickness per employee per year

• just under half of absence is short-term

(up to 7 days) absence

CIPD annual absence survey 2013 (public

sector)

• 1/3 absence due to longer-term of 4

weeks+

• increase in absence due to stress –

workload most common cause

• cost of absence per employee is £726

Make sure you

• follow your policy and regularly review it –

is it Fit for Purpose?

• monitor absence rates

• carry out return to work interviews

• identify if there is an underlying health

condition

• are absences genuine?

• identify if there is a pattern which needs

to be dealt with - have they hit triggers?

• use your triggers points to take action

• make effective use of occupational health

• keep in contact with employees during

absences - be sensitive and supportive

• keep a paper trail

• most common absence management tool

– they make a difference to reducing

levels of absence and reinforcing your

Duty of Care

• ensures you are consistent

• essential to identify potential underlying

conditions

• opportunity to explain concerns about

attendance

• opportunity to identify support that may

be required

Short-term absence: first formal meeting

• the effect of the pattern of absences on the

employee's colleagues, department and the

service

• the likelihood of continuing absences and the

impact they are likely to have

• whether there are changes to the employee's

job or redeployment opportunities that would

assist in attendance, reduce the effect on

colleagues or the service to patients

• whether the employee has a disability and, if

so, whether there are any reasonable

adjustments that could be made

• whether it is appropriate to give the employee

a formal warning that their attendance levels

need to improve and attendance targets.

1. Does the employee suffer from an

underlying condition which could

amount to a disability?

do you have clear and up to date medical evidence?

do you need further evidence – GP/specialist?

work related injury?

reasonable adjustments exhausted?

2. targets: set, communicated, reasonable,

extension?

3. surrounding circumstances

4. impact of absence on service

delivery/colleagues

5. alternative employment

6. PHI/Ill health retirement

7. potentially fair reasons for dismissal –

SOSR/Capability/Conduct

TIP: Consider was it reasonable to dismiss -

band of reasonable responses

• communicate with staff about current

health risks and ensure staff

communication systems are reliable

• advise staff with flu like / D & V

symptoms to stay away from work

• treat employees consistently

• have contingency plans for staff absence,

especially key staff

• familiarise yourself with sickness,

absence and dependent leave policies

and consider how they need to be

modified

• consider arrangements for homeworking

where appropriate

act promptly

know the absence policy well, and follow it consistently

informed line managers

a culture which is open and supportive

keep detailed records and notes of absence

perform your return-to-work interviews

consider disability and as a consequence reasonable adjustments

gather appropriate medical information

don’t pre-judge the outcome of meetings

contemporaneous notes

We hope you found in useful.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or wish to

discuss the topic we covered further…

e gemma.steele@brownejacobson.com

t +44 (0) 121 237 4561