Guidance for Line Managers

When a member of your team is off sick you should maintain contact with them, this should be done by agreement, so your employee feels comfortable with the level of contact being made. The type of sickness will also play a part into how and how often you contact your employee.  

As a start, unless you have already agreed when to “touch base”, when a member of your team has been off for four days, and no return to work date has been suggested, we would recommend you get in touch.  

The basis of this call is to establish how your team member is feeling and the likelihood of them returning to work. This is not to pressure someone into getting back to work, but rather an opportunity for you to support them through their sickness. They may be ready to return to work, if this is the case you can use this conversation to arrange a return to work meeting, and discuss if there is any adjustments they may need to support their return.  

If they are not ready then you should agree when it’s appropriate for you to contact them again. Remind them that if their sickness goes over seven days a Fit Note will be needed and confirm how they can send that to you. The conversation is a joint discussion, and every effort should be made to ensure that your team member feels comfortable talking with you. It may be that you don’t need to speak again until just before a fit note runs out, but some people may want a weekly or monthly check in (depending on the length of absence).  

For members of staff who have been off for extended periods, you should use the last conversation you have before they return to work to work through any adjustments they may need as they transition back into the workplace. Even a month off from sickness can be daunting for those returning to work, so please ensure you are empathetic.  

When discussing contact with an employee who is unwell for an extended period of time, it is also useful to agree with them if there is anything they do not want to be contacted about while they are unwell, such as birthdays, or work social events. While it may feel like a nice thing to do, some will want to be included and others may not, so it’s always best to check and endeavour to honour their request.  

You should use an Adjustment Passport to record any adjustments being made. 

You are responsible for ensuring sickness absence is recorded on ABW. This should be done at the point your employee goes off sick – you may not have an end date at that point, but you can update the absence on the system as you get more information.  

It is really important that you keep the system up to date, as sickness absence affects sickness management triggers, pay, what advice and occupational health input is provided and for welfare monitoring of your employee. For example, if extended absence records are not up to date, we are unable to effectively provide pay guidance for the sick individual increasing their potential stress levels by having a sudden pay drop or putting them at a financial detriment. In cases of extended sickness absence, this may also impact on your ability to maintain staffing levels. 

How to Log an Absence  

Logging Sickness Absence is a simple process on ABW. Step by step instructions can be found in appendix 1.  

Any period of sickness that goes over seven calendar days requires a fit note from a recognised medical practitioner. These should be uploaded to ABW upon receipt. Fit notes should be provided as soon as reasonably possible, you don’t need the physical note to take receipt of it initially. A photograph or scan will be sufficient.   

Fit notes impact on sick pay so it is very important that fit notes are uploaded as soon as possible.  

When your employee returns to work you should conduct a return-to-work interview on their first day back – or as close to this as possible.  

A return-to-work interview is an opportunity for you as a manager to welcome them back to work, take the opportunity to understand if your employee is ready to return to work.  Be courteous, show empathy, and start from the standpoint that all absence is genuine (until proven otherwise) and nobody wants to be sick.  

If return to work meetings are done well, they can be a great tool for an open discussion between you and your employee to help reduce reoccurring sickness absence and ensure that the right supportive measures are in place to enable your team to work.  

There may be times from these discussions that you will establish that more support that is needed, if this is the case, use the adjustment passport document, work through this together to record any accommodations or adjustments that have been agreed. You should ensure further meeting is booked to review these adjustments to ensure they are productive.  

What is an Adjustment Passport? 

An adjustment passport is a document used to create a conversation and record of any requests and implementation of adjustments that might be needed by a member of staff. These adjustments may be when someone is returning to work after a long absence or for someone who has an ongoing condition that might require specific equipment to enable them to work comfortably and safely in the office.  

An adjustment passport isn’t just for when someone requires a specialist chair or a sit/stand desk, you should use them also to support staff who may require a little more flexibility in their approach to work should they have an ongoing medical condition or a temporary adjustment while for instance as they adjust to new medication. 

An Adjustment Passport stays with an employee, should they move line managers they passport goes with them. If you are a line manager who newly manages someone with an Adjustment Passport, you should ensure that the agreed adjustments are in place and should it be needed a review take place.  

There may be times when requested adjustments cannot be made, if this is the case, you should record down why it is not possible to support the request. Should you have any concerns about a request being made, you should speak to HR in the first instance.  

Below is an example of when an adjustment passport should be used. 

Jane is currently going through the menopause, it is causing her to have hot flushes and night sweats so she is getting very poor quality sleep and so have been arriving late to the office as a result which is causing her distress.  

Jane and her manager work through the adjustment passport together and agree Jane adjust her working hours to start and finish an hour later three days a week, to allow her time to catch up on sleep, and start her day without feeling rushed and pressured. They agree a review date of 3 weeks’ time to see how well the adjustment is working for both Jane and her manager.    

How to complete an Adjustment Passport 

Not every section of the Adjustment Passport will be relevant for completion. Work through the sections that apply to your employee and agree a regular review date.  

Different adjustments will require different review times you should review on an annual basis to ensure that they are still supportive to your employee. If an adjustment is required before the agreed review date you bring forward the review as necessary.  

When a member of your team requires a medical appointment,  

1. Where they have requested the appointment i.e. the initial appointment with the Doctor or Dentist, the appointment will need to be taken in the employees own time. As a manager, we’d encourage you to be flexible in how you support this, by allowing the time to be made up elsewhere (an extra 15 minutes a day for example), the appointment be taken on a lunch break, or through annual leave.   
2. Any appointment where an employee’s attendance has been requested, for example cancer screening, essential dental work (like a filling), you should give reasonable time out of the office for them to attend. You can request a copy of the appointment request. 

Before you make an Occupational Health (OH) referral you must discuss with your employee why you are planning on referring them, you should share the referral form with your employee in advance of submitting to HR, so it’s important to have a discussion. Employees don’t have to agree to speak to OH so an open discussion before you begin the process will ensure that you are both comfortable with OH being the next step.  

There are a few different reasons why you might need to make an OH referral, but the main reasons will be to help us as an employer understand what someone needs to feel better, return to work, be able to for their job and what to avoid that could cause further health or absence issues.  

You may need to make an OH referral for the following list, there may be additional reasons also, if you are unsure, contact HR in the first instance:  

• New Starter Health Assessment Questionnaires (conducted during the employment process); 
• Health surveillance to meet requirements under health and safety legislation. 
• Return to work assessment and rehabilitation advice. 
• Advice on sickness absence management. 
• Workplace assessments. 
• Assessment of Genetic Modification workers and employees working with hazardous biological agents. 
• Expectant & New Mothers Assessments. 
• Night Worker assessments to comply with Working Time Regulations. 
• Give advice about vaccinations required for work. 
• Assessment of work-related illness and review of long term sickness; 
• Medical assessments for early retirement 

How to Refer 

Referrals are made by Line Managers, if an employee wants a referral, they should in the first instance speak with their Line Manager. Line Managers should complete a full referral form and send this through to hr@aber.ac.uk where it will then be triaged. If a referral is the most suitable option, an appointment will be created for you with Insight and a report will follow within 72 hours. 

OH Referral Form 

Video guidance on the role of Occupational Health in the Workplace can be found here. 

Sick on Annual Leave 

Where a member of your team is provided with a fit note for sickness that has occurred during a period of annual leave, the leave missed during this period will be returned to them. If they are unwell while on leave but do not have a fit note, the period will remain as annual leave.  

Annual Leave while Sick 

Employees still accrue annual leave while on sick leave. Line Managers should ensure that employees are able to take this annual leave, within a reasonable time frame. 

 

Sickness absence is monitored on a 12 month rolling basis. You should refer to the Sickness Benefit Scheme for full details of how sick pay is applied, and where necessary contact Payroll to confirm when full and half pay periods will end.  

As a quick reference only, the amount of Occupational Sick Pay provided by the University to an employee while on sick leave is linked to their continuous service. 

Pregnancy related sickness should be recorded on ABW as you would any other sickness.  

It is unusual for pregnancy related sickness to cause a sickness absence trigger that requires formal action, however if you have concerns please raise this with your HRBP.  

If sickness is close to the baby’s due date, this may automatically start maternity leave and will no longer be classed as sickness absence.  

Baby Loss 

In the difficult event that a member of your team is pregnant but loses their baby you should be sure to be empathetic and understanding. Baby loss affects people in different ways. If a baby is lost following the 24th week of pregnancy your employee will be entitled to maternity leave and the maternity policy should be referred to.  

If your employee has had a confirmed pregnancy through a scan for instance, but loses their baby before their 24th week of pregnancy, they will be entitled to take a weeks leave in the first instance that will not count towards their sickness absence. They may require additional sick leave during this time, so be patient and supportive to them.

Should an employee require time off due to a mental health issue, it is important that you take the matter seriously and be supportive to that individual. Absence due to mental health issues will be treated in the same way as other absences. 

Mental Health issues can be considered as a disability, where it has a long-term (if it lasts for or is likely to last for 12 months or more), and impacts the employee’s normal day to day activity. This is not limited to work-based activities. This will ordinarily have been diagnosed by a medical practitioner.  

All mental health issues are personal to an individual and therefore one course of action may not be suitable for all staff members.  

It is particularly important that you remain in touch with employees while they are absent from work due to mental illness and depending on the severity or need, discuss any adjustments that may be needed to facilitate a return to work. If you have any concerns about the best way to maintain contact with staff who have stress-related or other mental health conditions while they are absent from work, you can contact the HR Business Partners for advice  

There may be times when members of your team may need some additional support outside of OH or that you are able to provide. Should this happen please refer your team to the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) which is available to all staff and offers support, counselling and guidance on a wide range of issues that may affect any of us at different times of our lives.   

The service is confidential and can provide support on practical or emotional issues, such as wellbeing, family matters, relationships, debt, workplace issues and more. 

We strongly recommend that staff members take advantage of the EAP.  

In specific circumstances the University will support members of staff being redeployed on the grounds of ill health.  

An example of when this may occur is: 

A member of the grounds team has developed a bad back that prevents them from being able to carry out their duties. To support them in getting back into work there may be the ability for them to move to a desk-based role.   

Please speak to HR if you would like to explore this option.  

What are the Short-Term Triggers 

Short term sickness management measures will trigger when an employee has: 

• Three periods of sickness absence in six months, of any length.  ​ 
• Four periods of sickness absence in 12 months, of any length. ​ 
• Has a regular pattern of sickness absence (e.g. always off on a Friday)  ​ 
• Cause for concern (e.g regularly off after meeting with specific colleague)  

What are the Long Term triggers: 

Long term sickness management measures will trigger when an employee has: 

• Been absent from work for a continuous period of four weeks 

The four weeks can be from consecutive fit notes or one fit note that covers a four-week period 

What do I need to do if my employee meets a trigger 

In the first instance you should meet with the employee and talk through the reasons why they have hit a sickness trigger. This first discussion is informal, but you should make a record of the meeting as any subsequent sickness could cause another trigger to be met and formal sickness management may begin. 

The aim of this initial discussion is to make sure that your employee is ok and understand if there is the need for additional support, or if there is the need for adjustment to support them in work or the need for an OH referral. It may be that an ongoing or temporary adjustment is needed which expects further sickness absence, if this is the case you should complete an OH referral.  

You should agree when to meet to review your employees’ sickness level at a later date. 

You should check in, see how they are feeling now, and review any additional support measures that were put in place. If there was detailed guidance from Occupational Health, this should be reviewed.  

If your employees’ sickness level does result in subsequent sickness triggers being met that are outside of any reasonable agreements made, then you will need to start formal sickness management at Stage 1. HR are included in this process. You should contact HR before arranging your meeting, and you will be supported through the process.