A Guide to Long-Term Absence Management

Managing employee absence is a normal part of running a business. We’re not machines – so every now and then, we might need some time off sick.

Short-term absence is usually straightforward to deal with. As long as you have a good sickness absence policy in place, you can handle issues like frequent short-term absences easily.

However, long-term absence management can get complicated.

According to the CIPD, long-term absence is one of the most challenging areas for line managers to deal with. If it’s poorly managed, it can negatively affect the morale and productivity of the wider team and can potentially fall foul of employment law.

In this guide, we’ll discuss what long-term absence is, why it’s important to manage it correctly and the legal considerations, before giving you an example step-by-step long-term absence management process that you can adapt to your organisation’s needs.

What counts as long-term absence?

According to the government, there’s no official definition of what constitutes a long-term absence, but it’s generally accepted to be a period of four weeks or more.

Long-term absence could be due to illness, injury, or mental health, and typically will fall into one of these categories:

• Mental health conditions, such as stress, depression and anxiety
• Musculoskeletal issues, like back problems or repetitive strain injury
• Serious illness, such as cancer and recovery from surgery
• Work-related injury
• Pregnancy-related conditions or complications – we’ll cover how to manage these in our legal section.  

Why long-term absence management matters

Managing long-term absence is crucial for business continuity and performance. When done correctly, it can have many benefits:

• Boosts productivity and morale: Managing long-term absence effectively can reduce absence levels, which will (perhaps, unsurprisingly) help to improve productivity. It also reduces the impact on other team members, improving morale.
• Improves retention: Offering the right support during periods of long-term sickness helps you retain valued employees, who may otherwise feel like they have no option but to resign.
• Minimises legal risk: Long-term absence requires careful management to prevent claims of discrimination or bias, and to evidence that any dismissal or capability processes are fair. If long-term absence is mishandled, your company could face an employment tribunal.
• Demonstrates company values: Supporting employees during periods of long-term absence shows that you take your duty of care seriously. When businesses have a people-centric approach to wellbeing, they see up to 41% lower absenteeism.

Legal considerations for long-term absence management

There are a few legal considerations to be aware of when dealing with long-term absence:

Employee rights

It’s important to remember that employees retain their rights during periods of long-term absence, including:

• Statutory sick pay (if eligible)
• The right to accrue and carry over annual leave
• The entitlement to reasonable adjustments (see below) for a safe return to work
• Protection against unlawful discrimination.

The Equality Act 2010 and discrimination

If your employee is on long-term sick leave due to a condition that amounts to a disability, you must be mindful of the Equality Act 2010.

Employers must make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees; in relation to sickness absence, this may mean making reasonable adjustments to facilitate an employee’s ability to return to work or to stay in their role.

It’s also important to deal with pregnancy-related absences differently. Pregnancy is included in the Equality Act, meaning that it’s against the law to treat an employee unfairly because of a pregnancy-related illness. You should record pregnancy-related absence separately from other sickness absence, and you shouldn’t count them towards any trigger points in your absence policy.

Dismissal and capability processes

Capability is one of the five fair reasons for dismissal, as set out in the Employment Rights Act 1996. Therefore, it is possible to dismiss an employee on long term sickness absence. However, to avoid an unfair dismissal claim, you must follow a fair capability dismissal process:

• Gather as much information and evidence as possible in advance of the process.
• Obtain robust medical evidence from an occupational health specialist or the employee’s GP.
• Conduct a lengthy consultation process with the employee.
• Consider alternatives to dismissal, such as offering a different role, making reasonable adjustments or reaching a settlement agreement.

The key is to be fair and objective and focus on the medical evidence obtained.

Fit notes

Employees can self-certify their sickness absence for seven consecutive days (including non-working days), but after that, they must provide their employer with a fit note (formerly called ‘sick notes’).

Fit notes are issued by an employee’s GP or healthcare professional. They should set out the date that the employee was assessed and found to be unfit for work, the nature of their condition, and when they are likely to recover or when they will need to be reassessed.

Once a fit note has expired, the employee will need to get another sick note if they continue to be absent from work. They should continue to renew their fit notes until they return to work.

Can an employer override a doctor’s sick note?

Generally, we wouldn’t advise that you override a fit note, as it’s medical advice. You shouldn’t ask the employee to come back to work when the GP has stated that they’re not well enough.

However, if your employee wants to return to work before their fit note has expired, you could consider getting further advice from an occupational health specialist to assess whether they are ready to come back to work.

Long-term Absence and Statutory Sick Pay

Employees who have an employment contract and have done some work under their contract are entitled to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) when they are on sick leave. They become eligible once they have been off sick for more than three days in a row (including non-working days).

Employers pay SSP, and employees are entitled to it for up to 28 weeks.

It should be paid for the days that your employee usually works, in the same way as wages.

If your organisation has a company sick pay policy, they may be entitled to this instead.

Can an employer claim back SSP?

Employers generally can’t claim SSP back from the government. There was once a scheme where ‘small’ employers could claim back some of the SSP paid to employees, but this was abolished in 2014.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme which allowed employees to claim back SSP for employees who were self-isolating because they had been notified they had come into contact with someone with coronavirus or they had tested positive for coronavirus. This scheme closed on 24th March 2022.

Managing long-term absence: step-by-step

It’s clear that there are a lot of factors to consider when managing long-term absence. Our HR specialists have put together their step-by-step process for long-term absence management so you can tailor it to your company’s needs:

1.    Initial notification and documentation

When your employee notifies you of their long-term absence, the first step is to gather information.

Confirm the method of contact your employee should use to keep you informed about their absence (usually by telephone call or email) and ask for the required documentation (e.g., fit notes).

Remember, if the employee is telling you that they will need to be off sick for more than four weeks on the first day of their absence, they don’t need to provide a fit note until they have been off sick for more than seven consecutive days. However, many doctors provide fit notes from day one if the illness or injury is sudden and serious enough that the employee will need at least a few weeks off work.

2.    Maintaining contact

There’s no legal obligation for an employee to keep in contact with you during their sick leave, but it’s helpful if they do. It’s important to cover what’s expected of employees during long-term absence in your workplace absence policy so you can ask them to maintain contact.

Agree on a communication plan, deciding on a method and the frequency of contact. With short-term absence, it’s usually reasonable to ask an employee to call every day to update you with their return date. But with long-term absences, it’s important to get the balance right.

Ensure that you schedule regular check-ins to deal with practical elements like getting updated fit notes, but balance this with your duty of care to your employee.

Make sure they have enough contact with you to feel supported and informed of the absence management process, but don’t be so intrusive that it could affect their recovery.

3.    Getting medical evidence

If your employee’s condition is serious or they are absent for a prolonged period, it can be useful to get an occupational health assessment. Occupational health professionals can give you more insight into your employee’s capabilities and potential barriers to returning to work. Medical assessments from an independent medical professional can also be used.

You should ask for permission to make an occupational health referral or get a medical opinion in writing. Your employee doesn’t have to agree to have one, but you should ensure that they understand that the purpose of the assessment is to make sure they get the support they need to return to work safely.

The occupational health specialist or medical professional may suggest reasonable adjustments that you could make to support your employee’s return to work. If your employee’s sickness absence is in relation to a disability, you have a statutory duty to make reasonable adjustments (see below).

4.    Review meetings

Plan review meetings with your employee to discuss how they’re feeling. Many organisations have schedules for absence reviews outlined in their sickness absence policy; usually, the first one is held at around four weeks.

Use these meetings to find out more about your employee’s recovery and when they may be ready to return to work. When it’s appropriate, you may want to discuss the option of a phased return. You can also use these meetings to ensure you have the most up-to-date fit note.

Keep records of all formal and informal meetings. If you need to construct a capability dismissal case, these records will be vital. Plus, keeping these notes helps you to remember details about your employee’s wellbeing and ensures you can support them effectively.

5.    Return to work planning

When your employee is nearing being able to return to work, it’s important to plan their return collaboratively. Remember to use the date on their fit note as a guide – they may require more time off when they are next assessed by their doctor.

In an absence review meeting, discuss when they are likely to be able to return to work and what that looks like: will they need to do reduced hours, or have a phased return? If your employee has been absent for a long period of time, they may need extra training – define when this will happen and what’s expected of them.

You should also discuss any reasonable adjustments you could make to make your employee’s return to work easier.

6.    Reasonable adjustments

You have a legal duty under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for employees who have a disability. Even if your employee’s condition doesn’t constitute a disability, it can help improve their confidence in returning to work if you consider making adjustments.

Common adjustments that occupational health and medical professionals may recommend include:

• Modifying duties
• Adjusting/reducing working hours
• Allowing working from home
• Providing assistive equipment

As well as being the right thing to do, exploring reasonable adjustments shows that you have done everything possible if you do have to make a case for dismissal – which should always be a last resort.

7.    Return to work interview

Once your employee has returned to work, it’s a good idea to have a return-to-work interview as soon as possible.

This is an informal meeting to confirm that your employee is, indeed, ready to return to work, ensure they have all the support they need, and catch up on any business changes since they’ve been away.

Acas says that a return-to-work meeting isn’t a legal requirement, but they’re a good way to offer support – they shouldn’t feel punitive. Focus the meeting on the support you can offer to your employee, rather than giving a long list of all the things that they’ve missed while they’ve been absent. 

What if the employee can’t return?

When an employee is off sick for a long time, it can get harder for them to return to work. They might lose their confidence, or they might struggle to keep up with the demands of their job like they did before.

You should give your employee support to return to work if they are finding it difficult, making reasonable adjustments where necessary. You should also signpost them to your employee assistance programme (EAP), if you have one, and have regular check-ins. Assigning them a mentor may also help them settle in.

Sometimes an employee’s long-term sickness becomes a capability issue, or the medical evidence suggests they won’t be able to return.

As a last resort, you can start a medical capability dismissal process.

You must follow a fair process; when handled incorrectly, it could result in unfair dismissal or disability discrimination claims.

Key steps to consider in a fair medical dismissal process include:

• Getting medical assessments
• Speaking with the employee about supporting them to return
• Considering alternatives to dismissal, such as reasonable adjustments, role changes or demotion

Avoiding common mistakes

There are a few common mistakes we see employers make when they’re dealing with long-term absence. Here’s the most common and how you can avoid them:

• Not staying in touch: Make a communication plan with your employee as soon as possible after they notify you of their absence.
• Making assumptions: Look at the evidence when considering your employee’s illness or recovery.
• Failing to get occupational health input: Speak to your HR team or outsourced HR specialists if you’re unsure how or when to do this.
• Skipping the return-to-work interview: Schedule time on day one of your employee’s return so it doesn’t get forgotten about.
• Rushing dismissal processes: Get advice from your HR and legal teams to ensure you are following a fair process.

Long-term absence management training for line managers

Managing long-term absence can be stressful and time consuming for line managers. Make sure you train your team on how to deal with long-term absence effectively, so you don’t run into any legal issues, and you protect your managers’ wellbeing.

Training should include:

• Handling sensitive conversations
• The return-to-work process
• The importance of clear communication and documentation
• Legal considerations, including reasonable adjustments

Providing your managers with the skills to deal with long-term absence can improve employee health and wellbeing. The CIPD found a strong link between line manager quality and employee health, especially mental health, so training your line managers well could reduce absences overall.

Next steps – how we can help

Our team of specialists are here to help you with long-term absence management, including:

• Absence management strategy
• Sickness policy creation or review
• Manager training and coaching
• Occupational Health coordination
• Return-to-work planning
• Exit processes and documentation

Don’t forget, we have some great resources over on PeopleStreams, our HR community. Login or sign up today to download them.