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Preparing for Winter at Work
With December well upon us and the colder weather setting in, the next few months can bring several issues for employers. Below is a summary of some of the key issues to bear in mind and advice on how to handle them.
Sickness Absence
The winter months sees an increase in colds and flu and more days being lost to sickness absence. It is a good idea to take the following action:
- Remind employees of your sickness absence notification requirements;
- Ensure employees self-certify or submit fit notes as required;
- Monitor absence rates against your trigger points and take action under your sickness absence procedures as soon as possible if triggers are hit; and
- Hold return to work interview upon an employee’s return.
Mental Health
Some individuals in the workplace may suffer with Seasonal Affective Disorder and others may find their mental health conditions are exacerbated in the winter months. It is important that managers recognise and address changes in their staff and their mental wellbeing wherever possible. This can include:
- Talking to an employee who you think may be struggling with their mental health to see if they are ok and offer support to them;
- Monitor sickness absence so if anything seems out of character, it can picked up quickly and addressed; and
- Make sure your managers know how to identify and respond to signs of stress.
Adverse Weather
The following steps can be taken to minimise disruption due to adverse weather:
- Remind staff of reporting requirements if they can’t travel or are running late;
- Ask staff to take laptops/work home with them if bad weather is predicted;
- Inform staff in advance of your policy on pay for missing work due to bad weather;
- If the workplace will be closed, ensure you have due notification procedures in place. Staff are entitled to payment for the closure period; and
- Consider implementing a policy dealing with the above.
AWOL Employees
At the end of the holidays, it’s not uncommon for some staff not to return back on their first working day. If this happens, take the following steps:
- Find out why they haven’t returned. If the employee hasn’t contacted you, contact them by phone/email to establish their whereabouts;
- If they are sick, remind them to follow the usual sickness reporting procedures. Pay them accordingly and monitor their absence in the usual way;
- If they are “stuck” on holiday ask for evidence. If it stacks up, consider whether to pay the employee for their absence (seek advice from us). If you still have concerns, it could be a disciplinary case;
- If you cannot get hold of them, try and contact their next of kin or send someone to check at their home address; and
- If there is still no success, contact us for advice on the next steps.
We hope you will manage to avoid many of these issues but if you do have situations which arise, please contact us for further advice.
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