Absence Management: Why Does It Matter?

Employee absence can be have a greater financial impact on businesses than most employers imagine. Absence can be requested for a number of reasons, from short-term medical issues to longer health problems, and a good absence management system should provide the necessary support whilst also discouraging inappropriate use of sick pay schemes and avoiding unauthorised absences.

Effective absence management has employee support at its core, both encouraging employees to stay in and to return to work. Employers should look to develop effective return-to-work programmes, of which flexible working could play an important part, and encourage good employee attendance. Businesses should also remember that most absence is genuine. A focus on supporting employees in their recovery will not only raise employee morale, but also minimise the cost to themselves or employee absence. Employers should aim to find a balance between providing employees with health conditions support to enable them to stay in or return to work, and taking firm and consistent action with the minority who may try to take advantage of their sick pay scheme.

This could show itself in having a strong, positive promotion of employee wellbeing and health in the workplace. By promoting this, employers can discourage non-genuine absence problems from developing and encourage employees to balance work in a way that minimises the impact of their symptoms where possible.

Types of Absence

There are any number of reasons as to why employees may take time off. These range from sickness absence, whether short- or long-term, and other authorised absences (such as annual leave, maternity or paternity leave, compassionate leave, educational leave) to unauthorised absence or persistent lateness.

The main causes of short term sickness in the recent year have been identified as:

• Minor illnesses (colds/flu, headaches, migraines)
• COVID-19
• Stress and mental ill health (e.g. depression and anxiety).
• Musculoskeletal injuries, including back pain.

Sickness Absence during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The pandemic has had significant and far-reaching implications on not only employee absence management, but on public health and wellbeing in general. Public health guidelines state that employees may still need to self-isolate if they may have come into contact with COVID-19, and employers have a duty of care to all their employees. This means that it is vital that staff who may need to isolate feel supported by their employers.

To help employers with this, the government have in the last few months published new legislation relating to COVID-19, which states that Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is now available from day one instead of day four for those self-isolating. Employers with fewer than 250 employees can also claim a refund for COVID-19 related SSP costs, up to two weeks per employee. 

In these circumstances, employees can self-certify as normal for the first seven days’ absence, but the guidelines suggest that employers use their own discretion regarding the need for medical evidence for absence beyond that. The government has also introduced a temporary alternative to the fit note for the duration of the pandemic where those in self-isolation can obtain a notification from NHS 111 as evidence for absence. Employers can check if this is valid using the online service. Another option for employers is to allow people who are self-isolating, if they are able, to work from home where possible and to continue pay as normal.

Many employers are treating absence related to COVID-19, including self-isolating, outside of their normal sickness absence reporting system. Some employees may need to self-isolate multiple time and should not be unfairly penalised as part of any system which highlights and analyses absence patterns which could be of concern.

The disruption caused by the pandemic to employers has been, in many ways, incalculable. Every organisation has reacted to COVID-19 sickness absence differently, but it is clear that COVID-19 has contributed significantly to employee absence over the past year: figures from the Office for National Statistics have shown COVID-19 accounted for 14% of all sickness absence since April 2020. It is important for employers to carefully consider what actions regarding COVID-19 sickness absence are suitable for their business and best for the health of their employees. Above all, employers have a duty of care to their employees, which includes taking appropriate action to ensure their safety during the pandemic.

For more information on this, take a look at our articles on Supporting Employees with Long COVID and Travel Isolation and Quarantine Pay.