Emplyee off sick but I think it is not true

System

custardy wrote: »

she has no need to get any sick note within the first 7 days

im aware of that ,but if theres a problem then the employee could back her story up .if they had to phone in every day like i would have to + unless at hosp has to be a land linerecorded on file then a simple check via 1471 would give some indication as to the truth of the matter.

Ronaldo_Mconaldo

Not reading all of this but i would not fire her out of spite. Keep her on but let her have a massive skiving session and not get paid. That way she'll not get benefits money or work money.

Uncertain

ILW wrote: »

I'm with you. I get the impression that most on here have absolutely no idea of how difficult it is to keep a small business going. If they had their way any company with only a few employees would go to the wall under a pile of regulations on what you can and cannot do.

Oh for heaven's sake!

It is not a case of being "with" the OP or against him. In any case, those of us who have correctly pointed out the pitfalls could be argued to be far more "with" him than the minority, like you, who have made stupid suggestions that could easily compound the problem.

You may not like the regulations (and I may well agree with you in some cases) but that is totally irrelevant. The company is bound by the law and the OP's actions in this matter stand a very good chance of exposing the company to a claim.

It is difficult to know exactly what is going on here. Obviously we only have one side of the story and when you examine the OP's posts they don't hang together very well.

What is clear is that he is floundering around (maybe due to a lack of proper support in his company) and in grave danger of making a difficult situation worse.

Sometimes when somebody is in a hole they need to be told to stop digging. Your approach seems to be to hand them a bigger shovel!

VfM4meplse

I have complete sympathy with the OP, as would anyone who has ever had the pleasure of dealing with irresponsible absenteeism. It causes masses of resentment when someone consistently lets everyone else down, and acts like rot within a team.

Calling an employee at home whilst "sick" is not harrassment. As the OP has pointed out, business continuity can be cited as a valid reason. Give her enough rope as they say, and then hand over to HR / your line manager to deal with.

Sickness pay is supposed to be for those that are genuinely sick, it should be viewed as the privilege that it is even though it is a right. In the US, if you're sick, your pay gets docked unless the discretion of your line manager dictates otherwise. People work hard and take just 2 weeks of A/L pa, they just learn to make the best use of their own free time.

custardy

CHRISSYG wrote: »

im aware of that ,but if theres a problem then the employee could back her story up .if they had to phone in every day like i would have to + unless at hosp has to be a land linerecorded on file then a simple check via 1471 would give some indication as to the truth of the matter.

staff dont need to call in every day
they have indicated they are going to be off the weekend
they are under the 7 day self cert' period
as for checking phone numbers.deary me
what do you do if a staff member refuses to give you their number? sack them?
witheld number,sacked?

custardy

VfM4meplse wrote: »

I have complete sympathy with the OP, as would anyone who has ever had the pleasure of dealing with irresponsible absenteeism. It causes masses of resentment when someone consistently lets everyone else down, and acts like rot within a team.

Calling an employee at home whilst "sick" is not harrassment. As the OP has pointed out, business continuity can be cited as a valid reason. Give her enough rope as they say, and then hand over to HR / your line manager to deal with.

Sickness pay is supposed to be for those that are genuinely sick, it should be viewed as the privilege that it is even though it is a right. In the US, if you're sick, your pay gets docked unless the discretion of your line manager dictates otherwise. People work hard and take just 2 weeks of A/L pa, they just learn to make the best use of their own free time.

so all people who are sick should be called every 3 hours to check their status and ensure they are locked away in the house?

VfM4meplse

custardy wrote: »

so all people who are sick should be called every 3 hours to check their status and ensure they are locked away in the house?

They should be contactable at the discretion of the line manager.

I often commit to calling staff at home "later" to find out how they are, without giving a specific time. If they're sick at home, it's no problem. If they have made other plans for the day, then they are confined to their own home.

custardy

VfM4meplse wrote: »

They should be contactable at the discretion of the line manager.

I often commit to calling staff at home "later" to find out how they are, without giving a specific time. If they're sick at home, it's no problem. If they have made other plans for the day, then they are confined to their own home.

staff dont need to be contactable at all
I remember when I tore my chest cartilidge
I had RM stop my wages as I 'wasnt in' to sign for the SD letter they sent the day I phoned in sick
no I was in but moving like a slow 80 year old and was up stairs
if you call 'later' and they dont answer,then what?

ceridwen

Then that is harassment with what you are doing V4.

In this case - we are talking about only a tiny little firm and the "gut reaction" about this particular person (which I share) that she isnt telling the truth.

Blanket phoning employees at home is unacceptable and it may well be that they are getting in some much-needed restorative sleep (ie from having had a broken night - courtesy of feeling ill).

teajug

purcel wrote: »

He hasn't got a clue about this side of the business, so he won't do it! I've asked him before for help and he told me it's up to me to get cover or to do it myself

Well then get agency people in to cover. If the owner is too busy in the next building counting out his money then he will not mind if that money keeps coming in!!

I expect it is easier to harass ill staff then to deal with the owner....