Management

Managers have an important role to play in absence management. The government’s Improving lives, the future of work, health and disability report points out that: “Every line manager, supervisor and leader has a critical role to play in supporting employees to stay well and in work. Evidence shows that how employees are managed, and the behaviours and competency of line managers, are crucial to creating a healthy and inclusive workplace where everyone can flourish.”

Just over half of respondents to the 2018 CIPD/SimplyHealth survey Health and wellbeing at work, reported that line managers are trained to manage absence in their organisation. The proportion of organisations providing line managers with tailored support for managing absence has been Increasing, but a substantial proportion provide neither training nor support:

“Managers don’t need to be health experts, but they do need to recognise the value of health and wellbeing at work, be able to spot early warning signs of ill health, have the competence and confidence to have sensitive conversations, direct employees to appropriate sources of help and actively promote attendance and wellbeing. This can be a daunting prospect for a line manager who is not adequately equipped to deal with these issues, with their own health and wellbeing potentially in jeopardy if they lack the necessary skills, confidence and time to support employee wellbeing effectively”.