What is absence management?
Absence management is the process in supporting your business through planned or unplanned absence of your workforce. This could include sickness, injury or annual leave. Policies and procedures can be put in place to support your business through the following with notification procedures, payment terms and return to work support.
Why does absence management matter?
It is important to have policies and procedures in place to support absence management and prevent the negative impact that it can have on productivity, efficiency and the rest of the workforce. Staff who are not absent take on additional work to ensure the deliverables of your organisation are not effected which can lead to increased stress and lowered morale.
An absence or sickness policy is also a framework for the employee absent to ensure they understand what is expected of them whilst they are away but also the obligations and duty of care of the employer.
How can we help you with absence management?
To ease the management of this situation, we can offer support on how to reduce absences, having difficult conversations with employees, reviewing your absence, holiday and sickness policies and let you know your legal obligations as the employer. To maintain smooth running of your business, we can advise on getting the employee back to work and ensure they settle back into their role as efficiently as possible. If further issues or uncertainty proceeds we can advise on next steps which may consist of liaising with our recommended Occupational Health advisors or writing to the medical professionals who hold the duty of care for the absent employee.