Topic of the week: Short-term sickness absence case study

In this week's topic of the week article, Sarah-Marie Williams of Clyde & Co LLP provides a case study on short-term sickness absence. 

The case study looks at the procedure that an employer should follow where there is no satisfactory explanation for short-term absences, and the employee refuses to allow the employer to obtain further information to help it to establish whether or not there is an underlying medical reason. 

• Topic of the week: Short-term sickness absence case study Discussing absence levels and patterns with the employee is the first step to dealing properly with a short-term sickness absence problem. 

Previous articles in this topic of the week series

Short-term sickness absence: overview Guidance on identifying the reasons for excessive short-term sickness absence and the procedures to address it are included. 

More from HR & Compliance Centre on short-term sickness absence and related topics

HR & Compliance Centre subscribers have access to a wealth of material on short-term sickness absence and related topics - ranging from FAQs on managing absence to policies and documents related to short-term sickness absence. We pick out just some of the information available on the subject. 

 

Dealing with short-term sickness absence

Employees who take excessive short-term sickness absence can create a number of problems for employers. Use our model policies and documents on Sickness and sick pay to help ensure that you are legally compliant when dealing with such employees, for example:

• Short-term sickness absence policy
• Contract clause on sickness absence reporting
• Letter cautioning an employee about a poor attendance record
• Letter to a doctor requesting a medical report on an employee who has persistent short-term absences
• Policy setting out structure for return to work interview after short-term sickness absence

Good practice: Attendance management Our good practice guide provides a detailed look at the reasons for poor attendance and ways of managing this costly problem, while our Line manager briefing on short-term sickness absence provides help for managers. 

There are also FAQs on managing absence: How should employers manage short-term sickness absence on a day-to-day basis? and Why is it important for employers to take steps to manage sickness absence in a proactive way?

Redefining the length of sickness absence Redefining the length of time employees are off work sick is at the heart of new thinking on absence. Nic Paton reports in Occupational Health on proposals to improve intervention. 

Short-term sickness absence and disability discrimination

Persistent short-term sickness absence may be due to an underlying health issue, possibly amounting to a disability under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. See the Disability discrimination section of the HR & Compliance Centre employment law manual for details of the provisions of the Act and the employer's duty to make reasonable adjustments. There is also an Equal opportunities policy relating to disability in our policies and documents module. 

XpertHR's FAQs provide answers to related questions on disability:

• When conducting a formal review of an employee's attendance, should any absences be discounted?
• Where an employee who is disabled for the purposes of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 is required to take time off to attend a medical appointment should the time off be paid?

When sickness absence is not genuine

Where an employee's persisent short-term absences are not due to illness, the problem becomes a matter of misconduct to be addressed through the disciplinary procedure. XpertHR's model policies and documents on disciplinary procedures may be used to address unauthorised absence, for example:

• Disciplinary procedure
• Letter inviting an employee to attend a disciplinary interview
• Letter informing an employee of the outcome of a disciplinary appeal hearing

See our FAQs on absence that is not due to genuine sickness:

• What, if any, action should a manager take where he or she suspects, but has no proof, that an employee's absence was not genuinely for the reason given?
• Will invoking the company disciplinary procedure be the best means of dealing with all instances of absence and poor performance?

Short-term sickness absence and pay

Employees may qualify for sick pay even where sickness absence is for short periods only. See the Pay for employees not at work section of the HR & Compliance Centre employment law manual for details of employees' rights to payment in the event of sickness absence. 

See also FAQs related to sickness absence and pay, for example: How can sick pay be used as a tool for managing attendance? and Where an employer wishes to reward employees for low sickness absence, what factors must it take into account?