Health and Disabilities in the Workplace: Part Two
Managing sickness absence effectively requires a proactive approach, ensuring that procedures are in place to communicate the expectations of the employer and the support provided to the employee.
People get sick from time to time and need the necessary support and reassurance from their employer that their job is secure while they are managing their health.
It is reported that during the first quarter of 2025 there were 2.8 million people in-active due to long term sickness absence. In 2024, the absence sick days per employee in the UK was 4.4 days.
Having a consistent approach to managing absence across the business is key to ensure that fairness is applied and that there are no disability discrimination concerns. The company procedures set out in the sickness absence policy allows the people in the business, in particular the line managers, to apply this fair approach.
The sickness absence policy needs to include:
- Sickness absence reporting framework, to communicate and clearly set out how employees report absence
- The legal compliance relating to sick pay. Plus any enhanced entitlement (if applicable)
- The support provided when employees are unwell
- How the employer will provide good health
How to record sickness absence
It is vital to record sickness absence. Using a digital platform where line managers/HR update absence ensures that all data is recorded and can easily be downloaded for analysis and to identifying any trends.
The aim of having the sickness absence policy in place is to provide a fair and consistent approach to absence management, recognising that may be absence due to illness, but also to monitor:
- where absence is no longer acceptable, where the employee is exceeding the expected levels
- where an interim measure needs to be applied to provider short term support e.g. temporary adjustment
- a medical condition where the employee needs additional support, and where there is a disability then the appropriate adjustment applied
Line managers and HR play a key part in the management of sickness absence. Providing managers with training on how to support employees and to pick up repeat absences is key. Managing employee’s health and absence can be tricky and something that managers feel uncomfortable addressing, so to provide training this will give them the confidence to handle each situation fairly and consistently and without the potential impact of a tribunal claim.
New legislation relating to sickness absence Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) entitlement is proposed to come into force in 2026 (not yet confirmed). Currently the first three days of absence are ‘waiting days’. The proposed new changes include SSP from day one of sickness absence. SSP is paid up to 28 weeks. This is going to impact employers, requiring them to pay SSP from the first day of absence.
Employers would benefit from reviewing their current practices including implementing a sickness absence policy, reporting all absence within a system, and providing training to line managers.
Nockolds HR can provide further guidance on any of the information provided in this article. To discuss this with our HR Consultants reach out to us for a free telephone assessment on 0345 646 0406 or fill in our online enquiry form and we will be in touch.