Managing sickness leave in the workplace: complete guide for employers

You can’t expect workers to have a clean bill of health every day. Employees get ill – sometimes seriously. As an employer, you have certain obligations you must fulfil to ensure you are prioritising the health and safety of the workforce, and this can be one of the most delicate aspects of HR management to understand.

UK workers are among the healthiest in Europe. Research has shown we take an average of just 5.8 days of sick leave per year. But employers shouldn’t crack out the celebratory champagne just yet.

Behind this ‘low’ figure hides a concerning statistic. The average small business with a team of five is losing just under 30 days each year to staff illnesses – impacting productivity and cash flow at a time when SMEs are already struggling with limited resources.

Below, we’ll go through the causes, costs, and considerations for managing sickness leave. We’ll tell you how to make a sickness policy – including how to calculate Statutory Sick Pay – and offer tips on how to support and reduce the number of staff taking sick days.

What is sick leave?

Sick leave is where an employee takes time off work because of sickness or ill health. In low doses, it is often barely a concern. But, when occurring frequently, it can signal an underlying issue that needs to be addressed.

Because sick leave tends to be an unauthorised absence – unlike leave for holidays, care duties, or training – it is arguably the most damaging to startups. The unpredictability has the potential to throw your carefully-laid growth plans off course.

Repeated absences can impact your team’s ability to work together, stalling productivity and output. Projects may be delayed or left unfinished, potentially causing missed deadlines and backlogs.

In industries with shift patterns, such as hospitality or manufacturing, staff absences might even disrupt the whole production line. Likely, this will increase the workloads for colleagues, leading to decreased morale and potentially elevated stress levels.

Long-term vs. short-term sickness

HR experts typically divide sickness leave into two distinct categories: short-term absences and long-term absences.

Short-term sick leave refers to employees taking odd days off due to common, non-threatening colds and flus.

Long-term sick leave is a different matter. This is for employees who are off work for more than four weeks in a row due to a health issue, such as if they are dealing with a cancer diagnosis.

These two cases are important to distinguish between. Those with long-term sickness may count as having a disability in law, which means they will have legal protections against discrimination at work.

Legal rights for addressing excessive sick days

Sick leave is an inevitability when you’re running a business. The idea that you can stop your workforce from getting sick is just wishful thinking. If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that employers have to prepare for sickness absences to occur at any moment.

Occasionally, however, a time will come when a staff member begins to take an excessive amount of sick leave and action must be taken by management.

How many is ‘too many’ sick days?

There is no legal upper limit to the number of days an employee can take off from work due to short-term sick leave. That makes defining ‘excessive’ sick leave a tricky task for HR managers.

However, teams can create their own explanation of what is ‘acceptable’ sick leave using the Bradford Factor formula. This is a mathematical formula used in HR to measure and understand patterns in employee unplanned absences.

To use the Bradford Formula, you should times the total number of absences (not including statutory leave like carer’s leave) for an individual in a year (S) by two. Then, multiply this figure by the total number of days absent (D).

For example, if the employee is absent twice in 52 weeks, each period lasting for five days, their Bradford factor score would be 40, because (2 x 2) x 10 = 40.

When defining what makes a ‘good’ Bradford factor score, versus a ‘bad’ score, HR teams should work from the basis that:

• Over 100 = threshold for concern
• Over 150 = managers should begin monitoring the situation
• Over 200 = action should be taken

Can I fire an employee for taking too many sick days?

Businesses do have certain rights and options when addressing excessive sick leave. But they must approach the situation carefully and within the boundaries of the law.

As we’ve explained above, employers have the right to ask for evidence, like a medical certificate, if an employee is off sick for more than a certain number of days. Staff who take regular sick days without a fit note or disability could be in breach of an employment contract if it is felt they are not genuinely unwell.

You can instigate formal disciplinary procedures if an employee appears to be misusing sick leave benefits. Sometimes, this may even lead to termination of a contract. However, bosses should exercise caution before taking such extreme steps.

“Dismissing an employee for long-term sickness or frequent absences is possible,” says Mike Smith, Head of Public Relations at BusinessExpert.

“Still, you must ensure the decision is fair and justified and that all possible accommodations or adjustments have been considered. Make sure to also seek legal counsel when considering such decisions.”

Another key point to remember is that all discussions with employees must be fully documented. Ensure that whatever warnings made or feedback given are paper-trailed so that the employee understands the process and to prevent disputes arising down the line.

Dismissing a long-term sick employee

In some cases, the employer will not be able to sustain the long-term sickness absence of an employee indefinitely, and a return to work will become impossible.

In this scenario, managers should seek to dismiss the employee for medical capability. However, make clear in the sickness absence policy that dismissal will only be considered once all reasonable attempts have been made to facilitate a return to the workplace.

Not to do so risks the employee choosing to take their case to an employment tribunal if they think they’ve been unfairly dismissed.

How to support employees on long-term sick leave

Employees facing serious and ongoing health concerns will likely feel stressed about the impact on work, or anxious about how their employer may respond to their period of absence.

Here are four examples of measures that a company could introduce to help support employees struggling with long-term sickness

1. Design clear policies and a communication plan: a thorough and supportive sickness absence policy that outlines the requirements, expectations, and available support, will help to keep information transparent and ensure long-term sick employees feel supported.Third-party support partners, such as Kiteline Health, can help employers to better support the wellbeing of their most vulnerable staff, by accessing training for line managers and distributing expert information from a professional health coach.

2. Health and wellbeing initiatives: Implement programs that promote physical and mental wellbeing such as wellness workshops, stress management seminars, and access to an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Request regular medical updates (with the employee’s consent) to stay informed about their condition and progress, which can help in planning for their return.

3. Maintain an open dialogue: An open and supportive work environment will ensure employees feel comfortable discussing health concerns with their managers or HR. Managers should engage in regular communication with the employee to show concern. Ensure the individual still feels connected to the workplace, and don’t exclude them from invites to company events, newsletters, or team updates.

4. Introduce new working arrangements: The employer should also make changes to an employees’ work environment or pattern in order to accommodate their return. Known as ‘reasonable adjustments’, the most common tweaks include introducing flexible work arrangements, or adapting equipment employees use at work.

If necessary, collaborate with the employee’s healthcare provider to develop a plan that outlines necessary accommodations, adjustments to workload, and a phased reintegration.

Tips for reducing short-term sick days amongst staff

According to official government figures, an increasing number of sick days are due to mental health, including depression and anxiety, as growing levels of workplace stress lead to poor employee health and wellbeing.

Rob Fisher is Managing & HR Director at Strategi Solutions. Fisher advises: “Managing absence should always be seen as remedial not punitive. Creating an environment where people are supported will mean that people feel more likely to want to attend work regularly.”

Here are four measures you can take to reduce the risk of staff taking excessive short-term sick days:

1. Review employee workloads: Bosses and managers should adopt an empathetic leadership style when managing sickness absence. If you are concerned an employee may be taking excessive leave, review their workload before taking any formal action. Encourage them to raise concerns if they feel under too much pressure.
2. Encourage holidays: All employees can get up to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday pro-rata. Encourage workers to use this time, and take regular rest breaks throughout the year to ensure they do not feel burnt out or overwhelmed by their workload.
3. Review your benefits package: Stephen Woodhouse, an employment law solicitor at Stephensons, recommends teams seek to introduce employee benefits and perks to alleviate the problem.“Introduce a mental health day that an employee can use at some point in the year. Agile working may help employees to juggle other commitments, health needs, or a gruelling commute. Even small changes can make a significant difference,” says Woodhouse.
4. Invest in ergonomic furniture: This might sound like a curveball, but labour market figures also show that musculoskeletal problems caused 10.5% of sickness absences in 2023. Purchasing health and safety conscious furniture – particularly for home workers – could have a positive impact on reducing sickness absence.

Discouraging presenteeism in the workplace

One challenge for small employers is to avoid combating sickness absenteeism in the workplace by encouraging presenteeism. This is where staff don’t take time off because they feel like they’ll be in trouble or will affect their future career prospects.

Presenteeism is an issue because it does not lead to a more productive workforce. Staff may be turning up at their desks, but if they feel ill or burnt out, they could end up doing more damage by taking a longer amount of sick leave down the line.

Organisational culture is a factor here. Employees working within a supportive environment where managers seem to care about their wellbeing will be much less likely to misuse their sick leave allowance.

“An engaged and motivated workforce will have a healthy sense of loyalty to the business,” explains Mandy Watson, Managing Director at Ambitions Personnel. “In return, the business values their health and wellbeing and that they won’t be penalised for genuine time off.”

Conclusion

Sickness absence is a delicate issue for employers to handle. No-one wants to be seen as penalising staff for ill health, but the risks of repeated absenteeism – such as reduced productivity and heightened stress for colleagues – are too great for employers to ignore.

As industries struggle with a tightened labour market, employers need to strike a delicate balance between their productivity demands and the wellbeing of personnel.

Approaches should encompass clear communication, adaptable policies, and a genuine empathy for the individuals involved. This will foster an environment where both employee rights, and business continuity, are protected – building a healthier, more resilient workforce.