Managing Sickness Absence

A Guide to Managing Sickness Absence

Managing sick leave can be one of the most challenging and frustrating tasks a manager has to deal with. Employee absence is problematic for several reasons.  It can be a major drain on resources, particular for small businesses, and it can negatively affect the morale and motivation of other members of the team.  Managing sickness absence effectively can alleviate some of the headaches (if you pardon the pun!) and ultimately can bring you a step closer to reducing it.

Know the timescales for sickness absence

Firstly, it’s important to know the legal framework for managing sickness (including sick leave) – the timescales to work to and the paperwork involved. Failure to follow the correct procedure could lead to problems if you need to address persistent or long-term sickness.

• From the outset: Ensure you have an absence/ sickness policy in place and that everyone knows the correct procedure for calling in sick. (Employees can be disciplined for not following correct procedures).
• First 7 days: An employee can complete a self-certification for the first 7 days of sickness absence. They do not need to have a doctor’s note.
• Return to work: On their first day back to work, they should attend a Return-to-Work interview with their line manager to identify:
  • If they are fit to return
  • If they are taking any medication that may affect their work
  • any adjustments that may need to be made in the workplace
  • the impact on colleagues and the business
• Exceeding 7 days: If the absence is longer than 7 days then a doctor’s note is required.
• Exceeding 4 weeks: this is considered as long-term absence and requires additional management – see our resource on managing long term absence.

Use an absence management tracker

Absence tracking can be done using an HR admin system (such as BreatheHR) or even quite simply using a spreadsheet. Noting dates and duration of absence can help you identify patterns and trigger points for individuals. For example, an employee that should work Monday to Friday but consistently reports in sick on Monday may be finding it hard to return to work after the weekend because they’ve been partying too much, or they simply don’t enjoy their job. Identifying the patterns is the first step in addressing the issues.

Managing short term absence issues

Whilst long term sickness absence can be particularly challenging to manage, absences of 1 or 2 days can also be problematic if they are frequent or triggered by other things happening in the business.
Sit down with the employee and discuss the absence patterns and see if they can shed light on what’s happening. Be open-minded and supportive and they will be more likely to share. Reasons for absence may need to be dealt with in very different ways.

1. Absences related to persistent health issues may need to be referred to occupational health services – see our Occupational Health resource for more on this.
2. Absences related to behaviour issues may need to be taken down a disciplinary route, for example if you have evidence that their sickness bug is really a ‘hangover’, and they are consistently calling in ‘sick’ after a night out.
3. Absences may also be an indication that someone is unhappy at work. They may genuinely feel unwell at the thought of coming to work, or they may resort to calling in sick because they just can’t face it. This requires further investigation and may reveal wider issues in the business that need to be addressed.

Can you dismiss someone due to absence?

If you have identified the reasons for absence and have attempted to address it through all available means (e.g. occupational health or the disciplinary process) and there is still no improvement, then it is possible to dismiss someone in relation to absence. If this is the route you end up taking, evidence of efficient absence tracking and following correct procedure is vital in avoiding tribunal claims.

If you need support managing sickness absence in your workplace, our HR consultants can offer expert advice on this and any people management issues. Contact us today to arrange a conversation and see how we can help you.
We offer a pay as you go HR advice service  as well as on-going service packages for businesses that require regular HR support. We also offer an Absence Management training course providing further advice and tools to better manage employee absence.