Sickness Absence Procedure: outcomes from the formal stages

There are three stages under the formal process of the Sickness Absence Procedure. Following a formal meeting, the Chair will decide on the appropriate action to be taken. The Chair’s decision may be:

Stage 1 formal meeting:

• To take no further action, but a further review period may be implemented
• To take alternative action, for example to progress redeployment or ill health retirement
• To give the employee a formal caution in relation to their absence(s)

Stage 2 formal meeting:

• To take no further formal action, but a further review period may be implemented
• To take alternative action, for example to progress redeployment or ill health retirement
• To give the employee a final caution in relation to their absence(s)

Stage 3 formal meeting:

• To take no further formal action, but a further review period may be implemented
• To take alternative action, for example to progress redeployment or ill health retirement
• To give the employee notice of dismissal

First cautions will normally remain active for 6 months from the end of a formal review period and final cautions will normally remain active for 12 months from the end of a formal review period.

The Chair will inform the employee of the outcome of the meeting via letter in accordance with section 19 of the Sickness Absence Procedure. The employees line manager will be notified of the outcome as well as any further recommendations from the Chair as part of the outcome.

Where the outcome of a formal meeting includes a period of monitoring and review, consideration will be given to factors such as:

• whether the absence(s) are persistent short term absences or long term absence;
• where the absences are persistent short term absences, within what timeframe can they be expected to show an improvement (consider any patterns of absence);
• whether there is an underlying condition and, if so, the nature of the condition;
• other factors such as a change to medication/operation dates.

When setting targets for attendance within a review period, the Chair will consider whether it is appropriate to apply any reasonable adjustments to the target.

Once an outcome has been delivered, management of the case will revert to the employee’s line manager during any formal review period. Managers should maintain employee support and conversations during this period as they would during review periods under the informal stages of the procedure.

At the end of a formal review period, or sooner if attendance targets have been exceeded, the line manager will notify the employee of the outcome:

1. Where the employee has achieved the required standards of attendance or has returned to work on a sustained basis (with or without adjustments) and is performing their duties to an acceptable standard, it will be confirmed in writing that they will be removed from the formal procedure but that the caution will remain live.
2. Where the employee has been unable to achieve the required attendance either during or at the end of the review period, or in cases of long term absence, is unable to return to work on a sustained basis and carry out their work to an acceptable standard at the end of the review period, the case will be escalated to the next stage of the formal procedure. The employee will be required to attend a further formal review meeting.

Employees have the right of appeal against any sanction under the formal Sickness Absence Procedure (where a caution or dismissal has been issued), in accordance with section 20 of the Sickness Absence Procedure.

An appeal must be submitted within 2 weeks of the date of the outcome letter.

Where an employee appeals against a sanction, the HR Casework team will commission an appeal panel and make arrangements for an appeal hearing, including arrangements for meeting rooms and relevant paperwork.

The appeal hearing will be conducted in accordance with Ordinance 35.   

An appeal will normally comprise a review of the original decision. Other than in limited circumstances, the appeal will not be a rehearing of the case. Where the appeal is on grounds that the formal meeting was flawed or incorrect process was followed, the HR Casework Manager will, following consultation with the appeal panel, decide whether a full rehearing is appropriate.

Exceptionally, the appeal panel may consider that new evidence should be presented, for example where the employee could not reasonably have been aware of a new fact/evidence at the time of the original formal meeting, or if it is otherwise considered necessary in the interests of fairness, in which case arrangements may be made for new evidence to be presented and/or for witnesses to attend.

Once the appeal has been heard the Chair will usually adjourn the hearing pending the outcome and advise the employee that they will be notified of the decision in writing. In some circumstances it may be appropriate for the appeal panel to make further enquiry/investigation before deciding the outcome, for example to check or clarify something raised by the employee or their companion during the appeal hearing.

The appeal panel may decide to:

• uphold the action taken;
• or withdraw the action taken;
• or reduce the level of action taken.