General Principles
Regular reports on absence can be provided to Deans/Heads of School/Heads of Professional Services and managers to help identify when sickness absence indicators have been reached or attendance is a concern. These reports are based on timely entry of data into the HR system, MyERP.
It may not be appropriate for the manager to take action if they already know enough about the employee's health to decide that there is no need to enquire further. However, it is essential that employees are treated in a fair and consistent way. For example, there should be objective reasons why no action is taken in respect of Employee A, who has been absent for 10 days in 4 separate periods in the last year, while the manager does invite Employee B to a meeting to discuss their absence record of 5 self-certificated days in 5 separate periods.
In some cases, there may be a need to make further enquiries. The manager should raise their concerns with the individual employee in the first place. The manager can also consult their relevant Human Resources Manager/Officer.
At all stages of the process, notes of meetings should be made and retained in accordance with Data Protection standards.
Raising Concerns Informally
If a manager has concerns about level of absence, they should arrange a meeting with the employee to discuss such concerns. The discussion ideally should take place soon after the employee returns to work from a period of absence. To structure the discussion, managers should use the Template for Return to Work Discussions (Office document, 14kB). The member of staff should be given reasonable notice of the meeting and know what the meeting is about. The manager should stress that it will be an informal discussion to discuss recent episodes of sickness and support that might be needed. The discussion should be considered part of an ongoing open and supportive dialogue between a manager and a member of the team. Consequently, it will not normally be appropriate for an employee to be accompanied by a representative or fellow worker. Similarly, it will not normally be necessary for a representative of Human Resources to be present, although this may exceptionally be requested. However, if HR are to be present, the member of staff should be informed of this in advance.
The purpose of the discussion is:
It may be necessary to advise the employee that the amount of sick leave needs to be reduced as continued absence at this level cannot be sustained and this should be confirmed in writing (a copy of the template letter is available from your Faculty/Divisional HR team).
It may be necessary to consider setting a target which is reasonable and achievable in the circumstances, together with a defined review period during which the absence level will be closely monitored. In these circumstances, the HR Manager/Officer MUST be consulted before setting the target to take account of any considerations under the Equality Act in relation to a disability.
Time off for medical appointments
Wherever possible, staff should arrange routine GP and dentist appointments outside their normal working hours. Where it is not possible to arrange an appointment outside normal working hours, the employee should give prior notification to their manager as soon as possible. A manager may ask to see confirmation of the appointment.
Time away from work to attend GP and dentist appointments that are not related to an underlying medical condition will not be counted as sick leave but staff will normally be required to make up the time.
It is recognised that full and part-time staff should be given reasonable paid time off to attend NHS consultant, other specialist appointments or ongoing GP appointments relating to a disability and where these cannot be easily arranged/changed. Similarly, staff will be given reasonable paid time off to attend counselling or other therapy sessions in relation to an underlying mental or physical health condition.
If an employee is off sick following elective medical procedures, then this absence will be counted as sick leave and should be self-certificated or a fit note will be required depending on the length of the absence.
Further guidance regarding time off for staff who have caring responsibilities can be found on the Diversity and Inclusion website.
Phased Return to Work after an extended absence of more than 4 weeks
A phased return to work is an arrangement whereby a member of staff who has been absent from work for a long time or has had a shorter-term absence linked to a chronic condition, returns to their full duties/time at work gradually, over a defined period. This is often over a period of a week or two and will not normally exceed 6 weeks duration but may exceptionally be up to 8 weeks on a clinical recommendation.
Whilst not needed in all cases, in some circumstances it can provide a valuable period of readjustment, enabling the individual to get back into the work duties and routine whilst maintaining their recovery.
When is such a return appropriate?
Most individuals return to work after illness without needing any changes to be made to their working arrangements. However, some individuals may need a rehabilitation/return to work plan to be devised. In general terms, such a plan may be helpful for staff well enough to do some of their work, but who may need some support to help them return to their normal working pattern/duties within a prescribed period. Such circumstances may include where a member of staff:
Where a phased return is suggested via a fit note, managers should refer to HR for further advice. If the fit note advises a return on a phased basis but following consideration this cannot be accommodated within the workplace, HR may seek further advice from Occupational Health via a referral. It is important that in these circumstances, the manager makes the staff member aware if there is likely to be a delay in receiving an Occupational Health appointment. In such a situation, the member of staff will remain as ‘not fit for work’ until further advice has been received.
A phased return arrangement is normally only considered following advice from an Occupational Health Professional following a referral where it is deemed a reasonable adjustment and can be accommodated operationally, and after discussion with the member of staff.
It should be noted that advice provided by the Occupational Health professionals can take precedence over a staff members GP/Consultant in relation to the viability, duration and structure of a phased return, as they will have a greater understanding of the impact of the employee’s role/duties on their health situation and the department’s ability to accommodate such arrangements (in liaison with the staff members line manager/Human Resources).
What arrangements can be made for a phased return?
As each individual and every health and work situation is different, each arrangement will need to be considered based on the circumstances of the case at the time.
It is important for the manager and the member of staff to discuss how to structure a phased return programme seeking advice as appropriate from HR and Occupational Health.
In terms of the hours worked, there is no fixed pattern to a phased return to work or duties to be undertaken, however, normally when discussing an appropriate arrangement, consideration should be given to whether the individual is fit enough to fulfil 50% of their contracted hours in week 1 or 2 of the phased return. Account should be taken of:
The manager should also consider any potential implications of such a return on the other members of staff and how this may be managed as well as any other reasonable adjustments during this period, and/or during the longer term.
Following this discussion, the manager should issue a ‘Phased Return Letter’ confirming the details of the return and HR can advise on the content of the letter if required. It is essential that the information within this letter is accurate to ensure that the correct arrangements are put in place with a copy sent to Human Resources.
When to start a phased return?
The phased return can begin as soon as a member of staff has been declared as fit to do so commencing immediately following the period of absence. If a member of staff wishes to return sooner than indicated on a fit note, then a revised fit note will need to be provided confirming fitness to return. It may also be necessary to seek Occupational Health advice to provide guidance on the impact of the employee’s role/duties on their health situation. This could also result in a delay to the proposed return to work date.
Structure and Review
Details of the planned phased return will be captured within the Phased Return Letter and will state what is expected in terms of progressive build-up of hours and/or resumption of normal duties, so that progress can be assessed.
In all cases the return to work should be regularly reviewed by the manager and staff member to ensure that the arrangements are supporting the return to work and that the individual is managing the gradual increase effectively. If their recuperation is faster than expected the arrangements can be amended/revised to reflect this.
Where a phased return does not appear to be working, i.e. the outcome is not likely to be a sustained return to normal working pattern/duties in the agreed/expected period, the manager may need to consider other options, in discussion with the staff member (liaising as appropriate with Occupational Health and HR). This may include whether a temporary/permanent change to their contract is appropriate and can be accommodated operationally. The manager must ensure that any variation from the original planned arrangement is notified promptly to their HR contact so that records can be adjusted appropriately.
If a member of staff returns to work after completing a phased return following a period of absence, the duration of any further requests for a phased return may be adjusted and reduced if the request falls within 12 months of completion of the original phased return to work.
A member of staff is expected to co-operate in the implementation of a phased return.
Payment Arrangements
During a phased return, the staff member is paid for their normal contractual hours. If following completion of the agreed phased return to work, a member of staff wishes to continue the period of reduced hours working, it may be possible to accommodate this through use of accrued annual leave or via a temporary variation to contract subject to operational requirements.
Occasionally, members of staff wish to return to work when sick pay entitlements have been exhausted. Whilst it is understood that staff may have concerns about their financial circumstances, the priority consideration is the individual’s fitness to return to work. Exceptionally, a member of staff may request the use of accrued annual leave as an alternative to remaining on sick pay.
If use of annual leave in these circumstances is considered, the manager and individual should ensure that enough annual leave is retained to enable the individual to take appropriate breaks/rest from work during the remainder of the leave year, following their return to their normal contracted hours.
Agreement to these arrangements should be exceptional and staff should not use annual leave as an alternative to reporting sickness absence in any other circumstances.
The entitlement to sick pay provision is based on service at the start of the sickness period that the phased return is linked to as per University Terms and Conditions.
Last updated: June 2021
