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Recapping Our Absence Management Webinar

The ELAS Absence Management Webinar

In this webinar, our absence experts discussed the importance of reducing workplace absence and much more. You can download your free copy of the powerpoint presentation here!

During the webinar, our experts also took questions from those in attendance and we’ve recapped that q&a for you below.

If my staff fail to follow the reporting policy for absence, at what point am I able to effectively discipline them?

If they fail to follow your process you can tell them when they attempt to report absence then upon their return to work interview you would advise them of this again and any future ones would be dealt with as AWOL (absent without leave) and disciplinary process will be followed.

Does the Bradford Factor have to be in my policy? Or can I discipline using it as a tool?

Whatever you use to monitor and subsequently discipline should be in your policy

Are the Bradford Factor trigger points reasonable for industrial, manual roles?

The trigger points are valid across all businesses and you can use discretion with this ie if it’s a workplace injury.

If Occupational Health advises me not to contact a member of staff who is on long term sick, how can this be approached?

If Occupational Health have advised this, there will normally be a reason laid out and they are recommendation not a rule (i.e. due to a grievance). I would still do welfare calls for long term illness and set out a schedule with employee.

As an employer, can I ignore or refuse to discuss or engage in reasonable adjustments for a disability?

Employers are legally bound to consider reasonable adjustments and they cant simply be ignored. If, after assessment, you can’t make the reasonable adjustments then a tribunal would want reasons to back up why it’s not reasonable, such as financial or the impact on the business. If this is not available or likely then you will fall foul of the Equality Act.

Can I withhold SSP if we suspect fraudulent sick leave?

If you suspect an employee is not sick and you have evidence to back this then this is fine to do so and this would be a potentially serious disciplinary offence. Legally, employees need to self-certify their absence for the first seven days of sickness and require a doctor’s certificate (ie a fit note) for longer absences. If an employee is absent without a fit note, where they been sick for more than seven days, you may be entitled to withhold either contractual sick pay or statutory sick pay (SSP).

Is there a right to reclaim SSP/CSP already paid if the individual is found to have been working elsewhere while claiming?

Going back to the previous point, if fraudulent then yes. However, if staff have multiple jobs, they can be sick for one and not the other i.e. workplace stress in one but not other, or feel better later in day. It’s best to fully investigate and follow your processes.

Do staff who are on a sabbatical accrue annual leave?

You would put a sabbatical agreement in place and in this you can set out with them expectations. However, it is most common that they won’t accrue leave but will retain length of service

My understanding is that you cannot use Furlough Pay to cover short-term sickness, including Self-Isolation, is this correct?

According to the latest Government guidance, as long as they meet eligibility you can furlough them. However, they would need to meet one of the below criteria:

if staff are on sick leave or self-isolating because of coronavirus, they may be eligible to be furloughed. However, they should get Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) as a minimum while on sick leave or self-isolating. As long as they meet the qualifying conditions. If they’re furloughed while on sick leave or self-isolating, they will no longer get SSP but should be treated as any other furloughed employee.
an employee is clinically extremely vulnerable and at the highest risk of severe illness from coronavirus. They are also unable to work from home following public health guidance.
a member of staff is unable to work (including from home) due to caring responsibilities because of coronavirus. These can include caring for children at home because of closed schools or caring for a vulnerable person.

It’s also worth remembering that it is a business decision to do this and not a requirement!

I believe that someone has fraudulently amended a response from track and trace. Is there a way of confirming it is legitimate?

Unfortunately, there is no official way to check these. We would recommend asking to see the actual response on their phone/track and trace app upon their return to work.

Does your absence management software allow input from our HR team?

Our absence management experts maintain Attendance Pro. This allows your HR team to focus on more important matters within your business.

Does your software integrate with Sage Payroll?

Yes, via CVS file!

Our monthly webinars are free to attend. They’re delivered via Microsoft Teams and are open to clients and non clients. Take a look at our upcoming webinars and reserve your place today!

If you’ve still got questions about how to reduce your workplace absence rates, call our team on 08450 50 40 60 or complete the contact form!