How to handle a disciplinary if your employee goes sick
You have invited an employee to a disciplinary hearing and then they phone in sick …. what are your options?
Firstly, it’s important to remember that even though someone is signed off work, it doesn’t automatically mean that they also won’t be able to attend a meeting or hearing. In order to manage this both professionally and pragmatically here are some steps we advise you to consider taking.
1. Find out more about the absence
You should discuss with them the nature of the absence to assess how long the absence may be for. You can then decide to pause the proceedings until they have recovered and returned to work, depending on the length of the absence. Remember to consider each employee’s individual circumstances regarding sickness absence.
2. Consider discussing alternative arrangements
What is the reason for their sickness absence? Could it be due to stress and anxiety of the disciplinary proceedings against them? You may need to discuss alternative arrangements for the hearing depending on the length of time that they have been signed off.
We know that you will have conflicting priorities with attempting to conclude the disciplinary proceedings without unnecessary delay on one hand, and your duty of care to your employee on the other. You should also consider whether their ill-health has (in the past) contributed towards their misconduct or poor performance.
3. Consider whether medical evidence is required
If the absence is longer than expected, it is likely to be appropriate (with the employee's consent) to obtain medical evidence. It may also be appropriate to seek guidance from either the GP or an occupational health specialist on whether your employee is fit to attend the disciplinary hearing.
It is not necessarily the case that an employee who is unfit to work will also be unfit to attend a hearing, especially where the ongoing disciplinary proceedings are the apparent cause of their stress and anxiety. Therefore, seeking this GP or occupational health report you will be able to determine if the hearing can continue whilst they are sick from work.
4. Consider alternative meeting arrangements
If they are worried about coming into the workplace or are unable to attend the workplace due to their illness, you could offer them alternative meeting arrangements. This can help them feel more comfortable meeting you at a neutral venue and less intimidating than attending the workplace. Don’t forget to remember you can conduct the hearing over Teams or any other video conference system. You could also offer to supply them with the questions you propose to ask at the disciplinary hearing for them to complete, without the need to attend in person.
If you require help with matters like this, please do get in touch with us and we can talk to you about options (and potential risks) of any actions you want to take.
Remember taking out an HR retainer with us, where you have on tap advice email and phone can be a very cost-effective way of securing HR support. Our retainers start from as little as £99 per month plus VAT and are dependent on the size of your organisation.