Female employee calling sick from bedAll too often employers confuse the two. In essence the two are part of a larger management piece called absenteeism management.

In absenteeism management, an employee’s absences are considered and compared against the company average to determine whether or not an employee has an attendance problem.

But the process is rarely this simple. Absences may range from occasional call-ins or sickness to lost time through workplace injuries. Some employers do not include lost time from workplace injuries but the whole picture provides a better analysis of the employee’s entire absenteeism issue and should be considered. A company policy should define whether or not it is actually taken into account in the end.

At Fournier Health we use attendance management to address the one or two days here and there that employees take – either for a health reason, car trouble, family issues or for many other reasons.

If ‘health reasons’ is an excuse for taking a day off, is there some consistency to one particular health issue? If so, this may be a potential disability issue and more investigation is needed.

Before managing attendance issues, it is crucial that all health-related absenteeism be reviewed for a potential disability. Potential disabilities need to be excluded in order to appropriately address attendance.

For instance, if an employee calls in regularly with headaches, an employer should consider this as a potential disability issue and ask some questions. Ideally, the employer would have a health professional ask the questions.

Further investigation will reveal one of two scenarios:

  1. The headache is just the reason the employee uses to avoid further elaboration for their absence.
  2. The headache is part of a health condition that has been going on for weeks, months or even years that has not been resolved or managed medically.

Now what to do?

At Fournier Health, the first example would be analyzed under an attendance management program that has been clearly outlined through policy, procedure and education to all the employees.

Your benchmark as to what is an acceptable number of days off per year could come from a variety of reliable sources – your own company average is a good place to start if it has been determined to be reasonable, e.g., 10 or more days off per year per employee. You can also use Statistics Canada for unionized or non-unionized work environments, depending on which suits the employer you work for.

The second scenario requires further investigation before you can actually confirm it is a disability. In these cases Fournier Health would work closely with the employee and treating health care practitioners to assist in resolving these ongoing issues. This may involve arranging consultation with the practitioners, arranging outside referral if needed, ensuring a supportive work environment, and of course providing proper health education for the employee to manage ongoing episodes without further absence.

In today’s times, our expectation for our employees is that they attend work regularly with few absences from work. As much as this is the goal, it isn’t always the case. By promoting health and by being genuinely concerned for each employee and their health, organizations can effectively manage their attendance issues in much more supportive ways then the old school of thought – discipline and eventual termination. Where does your company sit on this issue?