Managing Sickness Absence | proven strategies to reduce disruption

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Frequent, unplanned absences can put excessive strain on already stretched teams, while long-term absences – especially those related to stress and mental health – can be equally disruptive and even trickier to manage. So, how do you minimise these absences, maintain compliance, and make sure you’re supporting your employees?

In this live one-hour webinar, WorkNest’s legal and HR experts will guide you through four common absence scenarios. You’ll learn the correct processes to follow, when to involve Occupational Health, and how to fairly dismiss an employee if the situation doesn’t improve.

20 March, 2.00 pm - 3.00 pm

Hosts: Employment Law Adviser and Solicitor, Chloe Kamutikaoma
Senior HR Consultant, Allison Calvert

What to expect?

Sickness is an inevitable part of life, and as an employer, supporting employees when they fall ill is essential. But what happens when absences become excessive, disruptive, or even questionable? Without proactive management, a poor workplace culture can develop and escalate over time.

Frequent short-term absences require one strategy, while stress, anxiety, and depression-related absences demand a completely different approach. According to the HSE, mental health-related absences lead to an average of 21 sick days per person – far exceeding the national average of 15.5 days for other illnesses or injuries. Whatever kind of absence you’re dealing with, taking the right steps in each case is crucial to reducing disruption and protecting your business.

In this session, we’ll explore effective policies and procedures for managing absence, highlight when to escalate matters, and ensure you handle situations compliantly to minimise the risk of an Employment Tribunal.

Key takeaways

  • How to review and strengthen your sickness absence policies
  • Best practices for managing short-term absences
  • Handling sensitive or complex absence situations
  • Understanding disability discrimination risks
  • When to seek Occupational Health input
  • The legal steps for medical capability dismissals

Got a question?

Submit it to our experts via the registration form. We’ll answer as many as we can at the end of the session.

Register for free webinar