Motion 84
Abuse of Attendance Management Policies
“That this Congress acknowledges that attendance management policies can help to deal with persistent absence in a fair and transparent manner, if they are well thought out and agreed with union representatives. However, the use of automatic ‘trigger points’ for attendance meetings, or even automatic sanctions, is a heavy-handed approach likely to cause unnecessary stress and counterproductive workplace behaviour. For example, employees may return to work while still ill (and therefore at risk of infecting colleagues), or stay off longer than necessary, to avoid reaching a ‘trigger point’. At its worst, a poorly designed system which leaves wide scope for subjective judgement can give numerous opportunities for workplace bullying, with managers constantly holding the threat of disciplinary meetings and sanctions over staff already under stress from health or family difficulties.
“Congress calls on the General Council to gather information from affiliates on attendance management policies and how they are used in the workplaces of our trade union members. This should uncover good practice in this area, in line with ACAS recommendations, as well as revealing the nature and extent of the misuse of such policies.
“Congress further calls on the General Council to use the outcomes of this research to:
- add appropriate additional advice to guidelines on dealing with workplace bullying; and
- develop a model sickness and absence management agreement that union reps can include in negotiations with managements and incorporate in existing house agreements.
Mover: National Union of Journalists
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