Absence and attendance management case study

Introduction This case study looks at a training programme that was put together for line managers. It was designed to assist them with the management of absence and attendance management. The case This training programme was put together by a team of HR consultants for a retail organisation. The organisation had 35 branches throughout the UK, and a head office based near Milton Keynes. The management of absence was largely delegated to individual branch managers. The senior management of the organisation thought that the approach to absence management had become disjointed, partly because of the geographical spread of the branches and the difficulties that were sometimes experienced in having a uniform approach to people management issues. It was hoped that the training programme would ensure a common approach throughout the organisation. The first section in the training programme addressed the recording and monitoring of absence. All line managers were required to keep records of employee absence. However, there was no uniform way of doing this. As a result, a new approach was introduced which involved the following steps: When the employee was absent s/he had to inform the line manager within two hours of the normal starting time. If the employee did not do this then s/he would not receive any payment for the period of sickness absence. The line manager recorded this on the computerised personnel system (that was also linked to the payroll system). When the employee returned from the period of absence s/he was required to complete a return to work form. This had to be handed to the line manager. The line manager was then required to sit down with the employee and discuss the period of absence. This discussion should include the reason for the absence, and a review of whether any support was needed for the employee as a result of the illness. The line manager was then required to complete and sign the return to work form and send this to the HR department. The HR department was then responsible for filing the form on the employees personnel record.

Customisable document taken from http://hr-inform.cipd.co.uk This document is for your guidance only. Professional advice should be sought before use.

Line managers were also made responsible for monitoring the absence of their department. A new approach was introduced which was as follows: At the end of each month the payroll department would print off a report indicating the percentage absence for each department during that month. This would be sent to each department manager and the HR manager. Each department manager would also receive a list of all employees within the department and their average absenteeism over the past 12 months. After receiving the reports each department manager was required to write a brief report identifying any issues relating to absenteeism and the proposed actions to be taken. This report was to be sent to the HR manager, and a discussion would then take place between the HR manager and the department manager before any action was taken.

Having introduced these recording and monitoring approaches the training programme then went on to address specific issues that the line managers might need to address. These were: The use of disciplinary action It was accepted that some employees would take advantage of the sickness absence payments (which were quite generous, involving full pay for four months followed by half pay for four months, regardless of length of service). So it was accepted that persistent absenteeism could sometimes be a disciplinary issue. However, it was also accepted that employees did get ill and it would be unfair to discipline an employee for being genuinely ill. So the following approach was suggested: If an employee has a number of short unrelated absences then concern should be expressed by the line manager during the return to work interview. Before any disciplinary action is taken the employee should be given an informal warning that disciplinary action is being considered. If there is any doubt about the medical situation of the employee then a referral should be made to the occupational health team. There would be no specified level of absence at which a warning would automatically be given because this could penalise the employee who was genuinely ill.

It was also suggested that it would be useful to look at the pattern of absence if there were suspicions that an employee might not be genuinely ill. For example, regular illnesses on a Monday or Friday might be viewed as suspicious.

Customisable document taken from http://hr-inform.cipd.co.uk This document is for your guidance only. Professional advice should be sought before use.

If an employee was given a disciplinary warning the line managers were told that it was important that the correct procedure was followed. This involved: Writing to the employee informing him/her that s/he was being invited to a disciplinary meeting to discuss the level of sickness absence. The employee should be made aware that a disciplinary warning is a possible outcome of the meeting. The employee should be given sufficient warning about the disciplinary warning. In particular, the employee should have time to prepare his/her defence, and to ask someone to accompany him/her to the meeting. The employee is allowed to be accompanied by a colleague or trade union representative. The line manager carrying out the meeting should also be accompanied by a colleague At the start of the meeting the line manager should set out the absence record, the reasons that had been given for the absence and the reasons that there were concerns about the level of absence. The line manager should then give the employee an opportunity to respond, allowing the employee to address the concerns that have been raised. If the actual records of the absence are disputed it might be necessary to adjourn the meeting to check the records with the payroll department. Once all issues have been addressed the line manager should adjourn the meeting to discuss the situation with his/her colleague and to consider the responses which have been made by the employee. The meeting should then be reconvened and the decision as to whether disciplinary action is to be taken should be given. If disciplinary action is taken it should be made clear what level of warning has been given. It is also important that the employee is made aware of how long this warning will remain on his/her record, and the possible penalty if the same level of absence continues. The disciplinary action should be confirmed in writing, and the employee should be given the opportunity to appeal against the warning. If an appeal is made then a more senior manager should hear the appeal (if possible). The appeal process should be a similar process to that already outlined, and the outcome should be confirmed in writing. If disciplinary action is confirmed a review date should be set. It should be clear to the employee was is considered to be acceptable absenteeism. A review should take place to discuss the situation even if the employee is not absent in the interim period.

Customisable document taken from http://hr-inform.cipd.co.uk This document is for your guidance only. Professional advice should be sought before use.

Long term absentees Some employees suffer an accident or illness that results in a prolonged period of absence. The organisation categorised long term absence as any absence that lasted for a continuous period of three months or more. In such a situation advice should be taken from the occupational health department before the employee was allowed to return to work as it might be necessary to phase the return, make alterations to the job or to provide other specific support. However, it was emphasised that it was important to remember that the long term absentee was still a member of the department. So it was recommended that newsletters be sent to the employee at his/her home address, and that the line manager make occasional contact via telephone to keep in touch with the employee. The timing and frequency of this would depend on the nature of the illness. It might also be appropriate for the line manager to visit the employee at home. If this did occur it was important that this was seen to be a caring visit, rather than a tool to encourage employees back to work before they were ready. Disabled employees The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 gave protection to disabled employees. A disabled employee is defined as having a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long term adverse effect on a persons ability to carry out normal day to day activities. It was explained in the training programme that long term meant 12 months, or likely to last 12 months or terminal. It was also noted that an employee who is diagnosed with cancer, MS or HIV/Aids is covered by the Act from the date of diagnosis. An important requirement of the Act is that an employer should make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the needs of a disabled employee. So if an employee within a line managers team became ill and this illness subsequently became defined as a disability it would be necessary to consider what changes could be made to allow that employee to return successfully to the old job or to a different job within the organisation. Line managers were advised that they should contact the occupational health advisers if such a situation occurred. The training programme lasted for four hours. During that time line managers were encouraged to raise any concerns that they had, and a number of different scenarios

Customisable document taken from http://hr-inform.cipd.co.uk This document is for your guidance only. Professional advice should be sought before use.

were discussed. The programme was successful in ensuring a more uniform approach to absenteeism throughout the organisation. The programme also made the topic of sickness absence more visible in the organisation, and increased the level of importance that was put on effective management of it.

Customisable document taken from http://hr-inform.cipd.co.uk This document is for your guidance only. Professional advice should be sought before use.