Absence Management Policy

It is a policy or policies designed to manage and reduce employee absenteeism, avoid workforce disruption, maximize employee productivity, and provide sufficient opportunities for personal time off to employees. Employers are required by law to advise employees of any terms and circumstances pertaining to being unable to work due to illness or accident, including any provision pertaining to sick pay.

A general absence management policy should include, 

• Information on contractual sick pay provisions and how they relate to statutory sick pay.
• Who and when employees should contact if they are unable to report to work?
• Information on requirements for medical certificates for long-term absence.
• Information on when employees must submit fit-to-work letters by their doctors.
• Describe the operation of any review or absence management system the employer may be using.
• Notice that the business maintains the ability to ask employees to participate in an evaluation by a corporate doctor or occupational health expert and (with the person's approval) obtain reports when necessary.
• Return-to-work processes.
• Advice or guidance on absence through major events (pandemics, natural disasters, etc.).

State-of-the-art HR management software is widely used among organizations of all sizes today to define, share, and manage the execution of such absence management policies effectively. HR software provides many capabilities to HR teams for HR Administration and absence management that can work together to implement a smooth absence management policy.