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This article first appeared on People Management on 11 October 2024.
A new study released by Zurich UK and the Centre for Economics and Business Research found that in the last year, 112.5 million sick days were taken by those with long-term conditions, with SMEs picking up 76 per cent of the 2023 long-term sick bill totalling £24.7bn.
When an employee is on sick leave, an employer should maintain appropriate contact. What is appropriate will depend on the circumstances (size of the business, reason for sickness absence, employee’s role/seniority etc). A careful balance should be struck between showing support and being kept abreast of developments but not inundating the employee unnecessarily. It’s usually sensible to agree how often an employee will be contacted, by what means (calls, emails, visits etc) and by whom (eg, line manager or HR). Always keep a paper trail of the content of conversations/meetings.
Medical reports can be useful in providing information to allow an employer to make informed decisions about next steps. Medical reports will often suggest adjustments, and associated advice, on how to support the employee back to work (if appropriate).
Employers should be mindful that medical information is ‘special category data’ so they must comply with their data protection obligations when handling it. Once a medical report/medical information has been obtained, it is sensible for a meeting to take place to discuss the content and agree on next steps.
Careful consideration should be given to the credentials of the medical professional being approached so as to ensure that relevant information is obtained. There is often an assumption that Occupational Health will provide the requisite information, but this is not always the case.
Managers should receive training on the sickness absence procedure and handling difficult conversations. A long-term absence procedure will usually involve several formal meetings and it’s best practice to allow employees to be accompanied to formal meetings under the policy.
The first meeting(s) will usually involve discussing the reasons and likely length of the absence, considering existing medical advice, looking at what adjustments can be made and agreeing a way forward (usually with steps and timescales for review).
Where an employee does not return to work for a sustained period, a ‘final’ meeting will usually be held to review the actions taken to date, discuss why those have not worked, consider updated medical evidence and establish whether there’s any reasonable prospect of a return to work.
In certain circumstances, an employer may decide to dismiss; however, an employer must be sure its decision is based on the most up-to-date medical evidence and should also consider any feedback from the employee and explore whether suitable alternative employment exists before making the decision. Obtaining specialist legal advice is always advisable in such cases given the unfair dismissal/discrimination risk.
Considering the Equality Act
An employee on long-term sick leave may meet the definition of ‘disabled’ under the Equality Act 2010 (a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities). If they do, they are protected from discrimination in its various forms (direct, indirect, discrimination arising from disability, failure to make reasonable adjustments, harassment, victimisation, etc).
Employers should be particularly mindful of their duty to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to support a disabled employee (which could involve changes to the role, working times/location, adjustments to processes – such as discounting disability-related sickness absences, etc), and ensure they are not inadvertently applying policies or practices which particularly disadvantage the employee and those with their disability.
There’s no doubt that managing long-term absence is a challenge for employers. However, structured, proactive and compassionate management can help support the employee as well as reduce the impact on the business and mitigate legal risk.
Should you wish to discuss any of the issues raised in this article, please contact James Baker.
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