- Coping with staff sickness absence can be a major headache for employers
- Be careful not to combine disciplinary and health issues
- Act promptly and consistently – and persevere
Dealing with long-term sickness can be daunting. We present everything you wanted to know about dealing with long-term sickness absence but were afraid to ask, from legal expert Rayner Jones.
Coping with staff sickness absence can be a major headache for employers. Dismissal is always a last resort. But, sometimes, it is the only option where you have done what you can to get the employee back to work on a reliable basis, but they are still off on long term sick or persist in having lots of short-term absence.
Employers recognise that employees will be sick from time to time and do not expect - or want - employees to attend work if they are unwell. However, it is difficult for employers to provide cover for employees who are sick on a frequent but unpredictable basis or on a longer term basis.
In this feature we answer one or two questions that have recently been put to us by employers – and which are far from uncommon.
Frequent short term absences
