Absence & Sickness
Employees who are unable to attend work for whatever reason (or, in exceptional
circumstances, someone on their behalf) must notify their Office Manager (or the
HR manager if unavailable) by 9.15 am on their first day of absence. All periods
of absence must be recorded either on a holiday, self certificate sickness
absence or self certificate other absence form.
The following sections detail the Company’s policies and procedures on all
issues relating to absence from work. Should further clarification on any of the
policies detailed be required, employees should contact HR Manager.
Attendance and Timekeeping
The Company expects all employees to arrive for work punctually and be ready
to commence work at the appointed time at the start of each working day.
Persistent lateness and unauthorised absenteeism will be dealt with under the
Company's Disciplinary Procedure.
Rest Breaks
To ensure a good level of service it is important to get a balance of work and
breaks. Whilst we are grown ups and professionals who can look after ourselves,
the company has a duty to inform you of your rights for breaks. Breaks do not
necessarily have to be taken at once (going out for a cigarette constitutes part of
your break) and we aim to be as flexible as possible in our approach, we do not
encourage a clock watching philosophy.
Full-time employees, unless otherwise agreed, have 1 hour unpaid break each
day. Part time staff who work up to 6 hours/day can work straight through without
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a break if they wish. If they would like a break they must inform their OM and HR
for salary adjustments. By law after 6 hours work, one must have a break. Our
policy is to advise part-time employees to take ½ hour unpaid break preferably
somewhere in the middle of your shift if working more than 6 hours.
Study Leave
Study leave only applies to approved courses. Please refer to the HR manager if
you are unsure whether your course is applicable.
For exams less than 3 hours long, we will grant the duration of the exam as study
leave (e.g. half day including getting to the exam).
For exams which last 3 hours or more, we will grant the previous half day and the
duration of the exam off (e.g. 1 day in all).
Unpaid leave
To compliment our policy towards flexibility, you may request additional leave to
your holiday, however it must be taken as unpaid leave. The holiday policy still
applies and you should follow normal procedure.
Appointments
As far as possible all appointments with doctors, dentists, opticians, etc. should
be made outside an employee’s normal working hours. Where this cannot be
done appointments may be made during working hours and wherever possible
with the prior permission of the employee’s Office Manager. There is no
entitlement to payment for such absences, although if the time is made up or
agreed to be taken as holiday (minimum of half day) it may be made.
Sickness policy
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There will be times when sickness or injury may prevent you from coming to
work. This policy explains the company's approach to periods of absence. It also
sets out what is required from you by the Company in order to qualify for any
payment while absent due to ill health.
If you think you may be contagious, please seek advice from your Office
Manager and or Doctor. On occasions where you may be contagious, please do
not come into the office. We reserve the right to send you home if we feel it is for
the benefit of others.
If conditions are likely to be permanent or to prevent a return to the job within a
reasonable period, subject to the possibility of an alternative post, the
employment might be ended altogether.
Bear in mind there is no entitlement above statutory entitlements. All benefits
over and above these are payable at the company's discretion only. This
document simply indicates the types of situations in which that discretion will be
exercised.
Sick Pay
When Sick Pay will not be Paid
The Company will not pay sick pay for periods of self-certified absence resulting
from self-induced sickness such as from excessive alcohol consumption or
cosmetic surgery (e.g. laser eye surgery).
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The Company will not pay any sick pay if it considers you are abusing the sick
pay scheme.
Giving misleading or false information to get sick pay is a very serious matter and
will be treated by the Company as a disciplinary matter which may, in certain
circumstances, constitute gross misconduct.
Reporting In
You, or someone on your behalf, must inform your office manager by 9am on
your first day of absence. You must explain the reason for your absence and
when you expect to return to work. If you fail to give an explanation, or the
Company is not satisfied that your absence is due to a genuine incapacity, sick
pay will not be paid and you may face disciplinary action. You must keep your
office manager informed of your recovery and any changes to the likely date you
are to return to work.
It is only when you are unable to call by telephone personally that someone else
should notify the Company on your behalf.
Certification Requirements
If you are absent for less than seven days (including weekends) you must
complete a self-certification form (HR folder) giving details of your absence on
your return to work.
If you are absent for seven days or more (including weekends) you must
complete a certificate form and you must provide a certificate completed by a
qualified medical practitioner for each week of absence and to cover the whole
period of absence.
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All certificates must be sent to your office manager prior to being forwarded onto
HR. Failure to provide these certificates may result in sick pay not being paid.
Medical report
We reserve the right (with your consent) to request a report from your doctor or
any other doctors that we choose, particularly in cases of long-term sick leave.
Back to work discussion:
There will be a back to work discussion with your office manager on the first
morning back as follows:
after any absence of 3 or more consecutive working days
after any absence, even if only 1 day or less, less than 6 months after any
previous absence.
Back to work discussions are to be regarded as exploratory not disciplinary. It is
envisaged that the exploration might lead to measures being taken to improve
the health and safety of the staff member concerned. But in appropriate cases it
might also lead to disciplinary action. Information held will be treated
confidentially however the partners will be reported to.
Sickness Absence Monitoring & Procedures
In any case at our discretion but particularly where an employee’s attendance
record is significantly worse than those of comparable employees, where it
creates a particular operational difficulty, or it has gone on for a considerable
length of time, the following procedures will be operated.
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After initial assessment of the problem the Office Manager and or HR Manager
will conduct an interview with the employee at which a colleague may
accompany them if they wish. A written record will be kept of any such
interviews that are conducted.
If the absence involves frequent short-term absence, the interview will aim to:
identify the frequency and reason for the absences and ensure that the
employee is aware that the absence record is giving cause for concern due
to operational problems.
prompt the employee to seek proper medical attention if there is an
underlying medical problem. A medical report could be requested if
appropriate.
inform the employee that the frequent short-term absences are
unacceptable and puts their continued employment at risk.
give consideration to any personal problems and possible ways of helping
the employee to resolve them.
agree a reasonable period of time over which the employee’s future
attendance will be assessed and indicate what the next step will be if there
is a failure to reach the standard required.
Company Sick Pay (CSP)
Unless your employment contract states otherwise, the Company will pay you at
the following levels for any period of absence due to ill health during the calendar
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year. The sick pay entitlement in any year is determined by the number of
complete years of service prior to the beginning of the year.
If you do not qualify for payment, or in any case, you can choose to take your
sickness as holiday (rather than unpaid).
Length of Service Period of Full Pay (days)
(based on full year, full-time , part-timers pro
rata)
Less than 6 months NIL (SSP if any)
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6 months – 2 years service 10 days full pay
(followed by SSP if any)
2-5 years 15 days full pay
10 days half pay
(followed by SSP if any)
5 or more years 20 days full pay
20 days half pay
(followed by SSP if any)
10 or more years 20 days full pay
40 days half pay
(followed by SSP if any)
If you are absent for more than your maximum in any 12-month period, any
payments for any period of absence will not be made except in extraordinary
circumstances (you will still receive statutory sick pay if you are entitled to it).
If you are also entitled to statutory sick pay, the total amount paid to you for any
day off sick shall not exceed the higher of the amount of annual salary payable
for that day or the amount of statutory sick pay payable for that day.
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)
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Employees are entitled to SSP during absence due to personal sickness or injury
provided that they follow the Company's absence reporting procedure and that
they are not in one of the excluded categories, listed below. Please not that these
rules are made by the Government, they are nothing to do with this firm, and this
is just our attempt to explain them, but for full details the relevant regulations
and/or Government literature should be consulted.
An employee must be sick for at least four days in a row before payment of
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) should be considered. A period of four or more
consecutive calendar days of sickness is known as a Period of Incapacity for
Work (PIW). Incapacity is when an employee is unable to attend work on a
contractual working day because he/she has a specific disease or are physically
or mentally disabled from doing so. The first three of these qualifying days in a
period of incapacity to work are called waiting days (Wds). SSP is not payable for
waiting days.
If a PIW starts within eight weeks of the end of a previous PIW, the periods are
linked. Where periods of incapacity to work are linked and all three waiting days
have been served in the first PIW, there will be no waiting days in any later linked
spells of sickness.
SSP must stop after being paid for a period of 28 weeks or has had linked
periods of sickness that have spanned a period of three years - even if you
haven't been paid a total 28 weeks' worth of SSP.
There are certain categories of employees who are not entitled to SSP.
Employees will not qualify for SSP if they:
Have attained the age of 65 years.
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Have a contract of service for 3 months or less.
Have average weekly earnings of less than the lower earnings limit for
National Insurance contributions liability.
Have claimed certain State benefits within the previous 56 days e.g. Job
Seekers Allowance, maternity allowance, incapacity/sickness benefit.
Have gone sick during a stoppage of work at their place of employment due
to a trade dispute and have taken part in that dispute.
Are in legal custody.
Expectant mothers are disqualified from SSP for the 26-week period during
which Statutory Maternity Pay is paid.
Employees exercising their right to Adoption Leave are disqualified from SSP for
the 26-week period during which Statutory Adoption Pay is paid.
The Company is liable to pay an employee SSP for 28 weeks in a linked or
unlinked period of incapacity for work. Once the 28 weeks have been exhausted
the sick pay liability transfers to the Department of Social Security.
Payment of SSP will only be made on those days when an employee is normally
contracted to work. These are known as "Qualifying Days".
To obtain SSP the Company's rules on absence reporting and recording must be
followed. The Company has the right not to pay SSP if it feels that an employee
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was not genuinely incapacitated. The Company may ask the DSS to investigate
where it feels that an employee’s self-certification absences were not genuine.
Payment of SSP will be through the normal payroll procedure and will be subject
to the normal deductions.
Long-term Health Issues
The Company will want to be kept informed of your recovery and may contact
you from time to time to discuss your progress. If you are unable to return to
work, or it is not possible to give a sufficiently certain time scale of when you will
be returning to work, your employment may have to be terminated irrespective of
any period of sick pay that may be outstanding or permanent health insurance
policy that may be in place for you at the time. Before any decision is taken, you
will have had a reasonable period of time in which to recover and assess your
long-term prognosis. The Company will also consult with you, consider whether
there are any alternative jobs you could perform, or adaptations that could be
made to enable you to continue with your existing job, as well as take into
account any relevant medical advice.
Any such decision, would be taken using the firm's disciplinary procedure which
provides for rights of consultation and appeal etc.
Absence Due to the Fault of Another Person
If your absence is due to an accident caused by the negligence of a third party,
and you have grounds for a claim against that third party, sick pay will only be
paid to you as a loan on condition that you seek to recover the sums paid to you
as part of any claim against the third party and reimburse the Company from any
sums recovered. Where a claim is settled for less than the full amount of your
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claim, or you do not recover the full amount, you will only be required to
reimburse the Company to the amount recovered. You will not be required to
reimburse the Company in the event that your claim is unsuccessful.
Medical Examinations
In order to assess your ability to continue working, the Company may require you
at any time, whether on sick leave or working, to undergo a medical examination
by a doctor or consultant nominated by the Company. The Company will pay for
the medical examination and the results of that examination shall be made
available to the Company. The Company understands that your medical
information is sensitive and confidential and will only use it in accordance with
the Data Protection Act 1998.
Returning to Work
You may not be allowed to return to work until you have had a medical
examination and been confirmed as fit to return to work.
Before you can return to work, you must attend a return to work interview. This
helps the Company assess if you are well enough to return to work and deal with
any new needs that may arise on your return.
This policy may be reviewed and amended at any time at the discretion of the
Company. You will be notified of any changes.
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