The Lazy Song: Dealing with absenteeism at work

Today I don't feel like doing anything

I just wanna lay in my bed

Don't feel like picking up my phone

So leave a message at the tone

'Cause today, I swear, I'm not doing anything, uh

The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars

We all have days where we just want to stay in bed all day.  Some call it a mental health day, some call it a ME day, others call it a sick day and sometimes it’s just Rainy Days and Mondays.

But what if you, as the employer, really need people to come to work? When is absenteeism a real problem? And should you put limits on people being able to take personal leave or unpaid leave when they just don’t want to go to work?

What is the reason for the absence from work?

Firstly, what is the reason for the absenteeism? Did the employee make contact and explain the reasons? If it is due to sickness or injury, or caring for an immediate family member, then this is legitimate personal leave.  In Australia, full time employees are entitled to 10 days’ paid personal leave per year, which is cumulative, but not paid out on termination.  Employers have to consider their own policies about how many days of leave in these circumstances require some sort of evidence, such as a medical certificate or a statutory declaration.

Similarly, if the absence is due to a member of the immediate family dying or contracting a life threatening illness or injury, or they or an immediate family member has a miscarriage or a stillborn birth, then employees are entitled to compassionate leave.  Employees are entitled to up to two days’ compassionate leave for each occasion it is required.

However, what if the absence is not due to any of the reasons above and is not due to planned annual leave?

An employer should then take steps to find out the reason for the absence.  Was it communicated to them? Is this an ongoing issue or a one off? Is it due to an underlining health condition?

Options to deal with absenteeism

Employers can then consider how to address it.  Perhaps an employee can be offered a formal flexible work arrangement if the reason is that they cannot attend work at a particular time due to a health condition.  Alternatively, an employee may wish to reduce their working hours if they have other issues going on that prevent them from attending work on a full time basis.

But what if the employee simply does not communicate with the employer? Despite phone calls and texts, there is no response.  Employers should consider a welfare check first, to see if the employee is ok.

If all of these responses do not result in an improvement in attendance, then an employer may wish to consider either some form of performance management or disciplinary action.  This would involve ensuring that expectations in relation to attendance and communication are made clear to the employee and that failure to meet those expectations may result in disciplinary action, such as verbal or written warnings, and up to and including termination of employment.

At what point formal disciplinary action commences will depend on operational needs of the business, the impact the absence has on the business and other staff members, and the reasons given by the employee for the absences (if any).  There is unfortunately no fixed rule – it will depend on the circumstances.

Abandonment of employment

Another possibility is that the employee has simply abandoned their employment.  Abandonment of employment occurs when an employee has not attended work for a reasonable period of time, has not been in communication with the employer and does not have a reasonable excuse.  In these circumstances, an employer must make reasonable attempts to contact the employee, which may include contacting their next of kin or even the police if there are concerns about their welfare.

Should an employer allow people to take unpaid leave?

One issue we advise employers on is how much unpaid leave should be offered?

This is a situation where an employee has exhausted all paid personal leave and annual leave and simply states that they will not be coming to work and will take unpaid leave.  This is a matter for the organisation to consider, in terms of managing operational requirements and staffing requirements and the reasons for absences.  Some employers have a clear policy on a maximum number of unpaid leave days an employee can take per year, others prefer to consider issues on a case by case basis.  For example, if a good employee has exhausted all of their paid leave and then has a tragic family event, an employer may consider unpaid leave or even leave in advance to support an employee through that situation.  On the other hand, if an employee continually takes leave at the last minute citing “too hungover” or “couldn’t wake up”, an employer may take a firmer stance on allowing unpaid leave.

In all cases, an employer needs to deal with unplanned absences as soon as possible, to avoid an absenteeism issue.  Otherwise employees may continue to say:

'Cause today, I swear, I'm not doing anything

Nothing at all

Whoa-whoa, whoa-whoa

ooh Nothing at all

Remotely Legal can assist employers and boards on all aspects of employment law, including advising on difficult people issues, reviewing policies and assisting with enterprise bargaining.  Remotely Legal can train your boards and management teams on how to deal with incidents and investigations.  Remotely Legal can also be your fully outsourced HR and people legal team.

RL Investigations, part of Remotely Legal, are a team of highly experienced and qualified lawyers and investigators, who can function as your independent, external investigation team providing fast, comprehensive and reliable investigation reports, workplace culture reviews and suggestions for organisational improvement. RL Investigations can also help your internal HR or investigation team to improve their investigations and assist decision makers in considering the right factors when making key decisions.

This blog is general advice only.  Please obtain legal advice in relation to your specific circumstances.  This blog was written by a human so please seek permission if you wish to copy any of it.