ABSENCE MANAGEMENT

Sickness Absence: Managing Attendance - Overview

The length and frequency of sickness absence is affected by:

		the nature of the illness/disease;
		the type of treatment an employee receives;
		how quickly the employee receives appropriate treatment;
		an employee’s resilience;
		domestic arrangements;.
		contact and support from the employer; and
		the nature of the job.

As a result, some of the factors that influence sickness absence can be managed by:

		monitoring absence;
		having access to competent occupational health advice;
		keeping in touch with the employee throughout their absence;
		conducting return to work interviews;
		developing rehabilitation back to work programmes.

Benefits of Managing Attendance

There are many benefits to putting in place robust attendance management policies and procedures. They include:

		reduction in the frequency and length of absences;
		reduction in long term disability claims/ill-health retirements;
		reduction in the direct and indirect costs associated with absence;
		increased productivity;
		improvement in employee morale as the need to ‘pick up the slack’ for absent colleagues is reduced.

Developing an Attendance Management Programme:

Miller Health Management can help your organisation manage attendance more effectively by helping to introduce an attendance management programme which can include:

		assisting with the development of sickness absence and rehabilitation back-to-work policies and procedures to ensure that they reflect best practice;
		providing training so that HR and line management understand their roles and responsibilities in the absence management process;
		analysing the frequency, spells and causes of absence (i.e. accidents, flu, stress etc.) to identify trends;
		reviewing and analysing health statistics such as accident statistics, employers liability insurance claims, and private medical insurance experience to identify trends, and health risks in the workplace.

For further information on how we can help please contact us.

Help with Managing Individual Cases

We can help your organisation manage individual absences by:

		Providing advice, based on the diagnosis, on the expected duration of absence;
		Clinically identifying which cases require early intervention to ensure that absence is not unnecessarily prolonged;
		Managing each case medically to ensure that the employee is receiving the appropriate treatment, and that they receive this treatment as quickly as possible;
		Monitoring the employee’s medical condition and advising when the employee is fit to return to some type of work;
		Working with HR and managers to develop a rehabilitation back to work programme;
		Excluding health problems for employees with frequent short term absence before disciplinary action is taken by the line manager;
		Assessing an employee’s eligibility for ill-health retirement or permanent health insurance.

For further information on how we can help please contact us.