Attendance management

This section sets out the framework for managing sickness absence and promoting employee wellbeing.

Procedure and guidance

The attendance management and ill health capability procedure and managers' guidance sets out the framework to address short and long term sickness absence. The aim of the procedure is to support employees in achieving and maintaining good levels of attendance and to enable them to fulfil all aspects of their role which will in turn lead to better levels of service provision.

It also provides support, advice and guidance to enable those involved to fulfil their role in the management of employees' attendance and sickness absence.

Following this procedure will enable sickness absence issues to be addressed in a fair and consistent manner so that employees can achieve and maintain a satisfactory level of attendance at work.

We're committed to providing support for employees who are absent due to sickness.

Managers have responsibility for managing the sickness absence of their employees. The advice and support team will provide advice and guidance.

The aim of this procedure is to provide practical support, advice and guidance in managing employees' attendance and the control of sickness absence.

Application of this procedure will contribute to the fair treatment of all employees consistent with good management practice.

Guidance is provided on:

the sickness reporting procedure and how to maintain contact and conduct return to work discussions with the employee
the operation of the ill health capability procedure including:
- roles and responsibilities
- conducting review meetings
- referrals to occupational health
- reasonable adjustments
- redeployment
- ill health retirement
progressing the 3 stages of the procedure from informal to formal meetings and onto the capability hearing where required

Also included in the procedure is information on specific circumstances such as disability related absence and mental health support as well as practical examples of reasonable adjustments and guidance on part-time employees.

E-Learning

To help all line managers with managing attendance and sickness absence, there is an E-Learning module to support you.

This should take approximately 45 minutes to complete and is mandatory for all line managers.

The e-learning course covers the effects of poor attendance, as well as actions required, support available and the processes to follow to ensure employees achieve high levels of attendance at work. It aims to enable managers to better understand the attendance management and ill health capability process and how to implement it in practice.

A comprehensive resources page is also available, containing supporting documents including a helpful step-by-step flowchart with actions and recommended timeframes.

The advice and support team can discuss any related issues and advise on individual cases beyond the e-learning package.

The introduction to managing attendance and sickness absence course can be accessed on Derbyshire Learning Online (DLO).