West London Solicitors

EMPLOYMENT LAW FOR BUSINESS – WEST LONDON

Tips For Managing Sickness Absence In The Workplace

Economists estimate that the bill for sickness absence comes to a total of £11.6 billion per year for the UK’s economy. A startling £1.7 billion of this amount is paying for employees taking “sickies” and skiving off work.

For any size or type of business the costs of covering for staff during absence can cause the business to suffer especially after the recession we have just seen.

All employers will have to manage employees not working as a result of sickness. Below we list some practical points which will help your business manage these absences

Make sure your employees are informed from the beginning what the absence policy is

When an employee joins your organisation you are expected to provide them with relevant ‘terms and conditions’ relating to inability to work due to injury or sickness, including whether any provision for sick pay is applicable.

It is possible to provide this information directly in the employee’s contract of employment or in the general employment handbook.

Having an absence policy in place is useful in that they help managers monitor sickness absences and give scope for employees to be treated equally. Employees should be informed of what steps they should take if they cannot work due to illness.

Devise a contingency plan

A further problem relating to impromptu sickness is that the employer is faced with organisation problems. This includes having a potential domino effect on other members of staff where they are not able to follow through with pre-prepared plans.

The solution to this is to have back-up plans in the case of this situation which include making cover arrangements.

For smaller businesses this may just be a case of easier said than down but it may be worth considering getting in contact with a temping agency or training existing staff.

Know the rules and stay ahead of the game

Sickness absence takes the form of many different guises. It could be long-term or short-term, due to a disability or pregnancy, one-off or recurring or even due to overwork or some form of harassment.

Managers need to be equipped to deal with the sickness properly otherwise they may be faced with employment claims by disgruntled employees.

If an employee purports that absence is due to harassment or overwork, or some kind of misconduct, the employer should carry out steps to investigate the veracity of this statement.

If the employer finds out the source of absence originated from the workplace, the employer should ensure they try to eliminate the problem. They could do this by providing counselling or training programmes or recruiting staff as back up.

If the employer has reason to believe the employee is not genuinely ill they may want to obtain an expert medical opinion and speak with colleagues to uncover the possible reasons for their absence.

If the results of the investigation prove the employee is able to work and was taking time off work for ill begotten reasons then disciplinary action may be the most appropriate next step. Well devised procedures should be put in place to avoid the risk of claims of unfair dismissal being used against the employer.

Disciplinary and Dismissal Procedures

Employers are required by law to go through certain disciplinary procedures before dismissing an employee.

Even if you have a fair reason for the dismissal, you may be liable for unfair dismissal if you do not go through the correct procedure.

A fair procedure should, at the very least, include the following :

• You should carry out a reasonable investigation before making a decision
• You should arrange a disciplinary hearing at which the employee is given the opportunity to state their case
• The employee should be notified of the hearing and the reasons for the hearing in writing
• The employee should be given the right to bring a colleague to the hearing
• You should consider other lesser forms of discipline
• You should notify the employee in writing of the termination of employment and the reasons for it.
• The employee should be notified of the right to appeal against the decision.