Long-term absence has always been a concern for businesses, but recent figures show that the number of people leaving the workforce due to ill health is increasing by 300,000 a year.

New data has revealed that 4 million people of working age in the UK are unemployed because of a health condition, and a further 3.9 million people have health conditions that limit the type of work they can do, more than double 2013 levels of 1.5 million. people.

This has big business implications, potentially impacting everything from productivity and profitability to recruitment, training and retention. In addition, when employees are not supported and leave their jobs, companies lose valuable talent – leaving them to deal with recruitment and training costs, and even possible discrimination and unfair dismissal claims.

But long-term sickness absence doesn’t have to be a headache. With the right policies and procedures in place, you can have the best chance of supporting your employees back to work and reducing costs for your business.

Common reasons for long-term sickness absence

According to the CIPD, the most common problems reported by people with long-term health conditions are mental health conditions such as anxiety or depression – 63% of employees citing poor mental health as the main reason for their absence and 76% of employees. reporting that they took time off due to stress in the past year. Other common problems include mobility issues and stamina/breathing/fatigue issues.

Regardless of the length of the absence, you will need to consider a wide range of factors – including what condition the employee has, what treatment he is (and will be) having, how long the employee has been and is likely to be. off for, what reasonable adjustments can be put in place to help them work and the appropriate sick pay policy and procedure.

Addressing the root cause

Since stress is a considerable factor in long-term absenteeism, implementing policies and procedures to help prevent employee stress and burnout is essential.

It is crucial to engage with the workforce and create an environment where they feel comfortable discussing their concerns, such as in a regular meeting. Once you understand the pressures they face, such as workload or understaffing, then you can look at what you can do to address them. This could be through measures such as training and mentoring, recruiting more staff, offering flexible working or adjusting targets.

Making an employee feel valued in a workplace can help reduce stress, this includes reviewing compensation packages and benefits. If you have the resources, you can offer a range of benefits. For example, you could offer a variety of training opportunities, which would be more attractive to employees who are focused on career development, or offer them perks, such as gym memberships and extra annual leave, which they might prefer by those most focused on individual benefits.

Employee engagement can also be increased through social activities and team building exercises, also preventing them from feeling isolated. Creating a support network or friendship/mentor program can also help with this.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of businesses training employees to become mental health aides, who are on hand to support colleagues with mental health issues. This has the potential to help with greater staff retention. Meanwhile, employee assistance programs are another added benefit that have proven to be an effective tool to help employees cope during stressful times.

Managing long-term sickness absence

When dealing with each case of long-term sickness absence, there are some key considerations you should take to ensure you are meeting your legal obligations and following best practice advice.

1. Put a policy in place

There is no legal requirement to have a specific long-term sickness absence policy, but it is often a good idea. In it you should set out things such as how sickness absence is to be reported, details of any payments, reasonable adjustments, the potential to gather medical advice and the process for managing long-term absences.

2. Keep in touch with employees

You need to keep in touch with absent employees, but make sure this is done sensitively – it is good practice to train line managers on how best to do this so that the employee feels listened to, but not pressed. In addition to more informal phone or email contacts, you should arrange well-being review meetings to take place at regular intervals and/or after significant milestones such as an operation or meeting with a consultant. These can help you understand when they might return to work and how you can best help them do so.

3. The process of returning to work

You should have a formal return to work strategy for when people return to work after a long absence. Return to work interviews after each absence should be supportive and discuss ongoing adjustments where necessary. It may be helpful for a long-term sick employee to make a “gradual return” if medically recommended, resuming their usual hours and duties over a defined period.

4. Consider any potential disability discrimination issues

You will need to make any ‘reasonable adjustments’ to support disabled employees under the Equality Act 2010 – disabilities include long-term physical and mental health conditions. This is why it is a good idea to have provisions in the handbook that make it clear that absence related to one’s disability will be dealt with separately from other sickness absence. Discrimination cases have no damages limit, so it can be very expensive to get it wrong.

5. Do a risk assessment

When someone returns to work, carrying out a risk assessment can help you decide on any reasonable adjustments needed for their work or work environment. Effective risk assessments of individual employee roles and/or needs can help prevent medical absences from occurring or becoming long-term. Be sure to work with the employee on the assessment itself and any adjustments.

where to start

Long-term sickness absence is a complex area of ​​employment law, but it has the very real possibility of expensive tribunal claims if you get it wrong. There are several important factors that businesses need to consider, with policies and procedures in place to manage an employee with ill health at work and during any absence. Employers need to ensure they stay within the law to get the best possible outcome for both the employee and the company.

Emma McGrath is a professional solicitor at Citation