Dealing with long term sickness absence
Long term sickness absence requires careful management by employers. It is a balancing act between supporting the employee’s recovery and return to good health while minimising operational and performance disruption and mitigating legal risk exposure. Absence management should be considered in two parts: dealing with the employee’s absence from work and then managing their return […]
Can you contact employees on sick leave?
As an employer you will want to ensure the health and wellbeing of your employees during any period of sick leave. But there is a balance to be achieved between reasonable contact designed to check on an employee’s welfare, or to address any absence-related matters, and contact that may be considered excessive, unnecessary resulting in […]
How to spot a fake sick note
If you’ve been given a fit note by an employee and you’re not sure if it is genuine, would you know what to do? Employers should be prepared and trained to know how to deal with employees suspected of pulling sickies or exaggerating illness symptoms. It’s useful for managers and HR teams to be able […]
Can you sack someone on sick leave?
As an employer, the law says you can sack someone on sick leave but you must have good reason and follow a fair dismissal procedure, or you risk costly employment tribunal claims. In this guide for HR, managers and employers, we explain the rules on sickness absence dismissals and share best practice advice on how […]
Long COVID sickness absence guide
For a growing number of people, coronavirus continues to cause a range of symptoms that last for several weeks or even months post-infection, leading to a diagnosis of long COVID. The symptoms can be so debilitating that it impacts their ability to work, resulting in long term sickness absence. The following guide for employers provides […]
Employees refusing to return to work due to COVID
With the recent lifting of lockdown and public health restrictions, employers can start to plan a return to workplaces for furloughed employees or those who have been working from home. Still, some employees may have ongoing concerns about the spread of coronavirus within the workplace, refusing to return where they feel unsafe, especially if they […]
Can employees go on holiday while off sick?
Ordinarily, you would not expect an employee to be going on holiday while on sick leave. In many cases this would serve to undermine the extent of any reported illness or injury, providing grounds for disciplinary action or even dismissal where this is indicative of malingering. Still, there may be cases in which going on […]
Malingering, fake illness & disciplinaries
If an employee is genuinely sick or injured, they are entitled to take time off work to recover. If an employer suspects an employee of malingering, and that they may not be genuinely ill or as ill as they claim, the employer can take steps to deal with the concerns. The following guide looks at […]
Employee signed off work with stress
Stress-related sickness absence has become increasingly prevalent in the workplace. Employers face a balancing act between supporting their employees’ wellbeing while minimising the risk of operational disruption and impact on other employees resulting from individuals being signed off work with stress. The pandemic in particular has placed unprecedented pressures on workers, whether adapting to remote […]
Fit note guidance for employers
The following fit note guidance will help you as an employer to understand the rules relating to fit notes, and how you can use the information from a fit note to most effectively help your business and your employees when absent from work through illness. As an employer or line manager, the fit note can […]
