Agenda item

(a)       That the on-going work to address attendance levels and the underlying causes thereof be supported; and    

(b)       That the comments of Members during the meeting be borne in mind during the development and implementation of the policy.  

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development introduced the report to:-

• Analyse the performance of the organisation in relation to management of attendance;
• Set out Corporate Management Team’s plan and commitment to achieve improvements in performance;
• Identify the measures currently being taken;
• Identify actions planned for implementation; and
• Consider further options to improve attendance levels across the organisation. 

The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development explained that this was a follow up to the Workforce Information report submitted to Committee in June 2013.  The indicator of the number of working days lost per employee was reported as having a ‘Red’ RAG status for performing below the target for the first three quarters of 2012/13 and the annual outturn for 2012/13 had been 11.03 days lost against a target of 9.8 days.  The report highlighted effective measures for managing attendance which were used by other organisations and detailed the arrangements currently in place for return to work interviews and referrals to Occupational Health at the appropriate stage.  Heads of Service were provided with monthly management information on long and short term absences and patterns of absence which they cascaded down to their managers as an additional prompt to take the necessary actions to manage attendance issues effectively and within appropriate timeframes. 

            Some of the measures put in place to improve attendance were reported and these included the introduction of a physiotherapy pilot in the Streetscene Service and the appropriate and effective use of ‘working from home’ where this was planned and where the employee was able to undertake meaningful work productively.  The key features of the physiotherapy pilot were also reported and the pilot had been positively received by managers and employees and early indications showed that interventions were having an impact on helping employees to stay in work.  The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development explained that an update would be provided to the Committee when evidence on the impacts was available.  Paragraph 3.18 provided details of the measures to improve attendance that were currently being introduced which included the publishing/reporting attendance rates broken down by service to improve visibility of the ‘hot spots’ in the organisation and to increase the accountability of all managers in managing attendance as a priority. 

            The Cabinet Member for Corporate Management welcomed the report but said that there was a need to raise the profile of attendance management. 

            Councillor Ron Hampson said that attendance still continued to be a problem and asked whether performance figures were compared to sickness levels in local private organisations.  He also queried whether the policies in place were robust enough and whether they were being implemented by managers.  The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development responded that the measures being implemented would make a difference but added that it was partly a cultural and accountability issue.  Councillor Marion Bateman felt that not paying employees for the first three days of sickness would have an impact on the sickness absence figures.  The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development explained that sickness pay formed part of employee’s national conditions and that lengthy discussions on this issue had taken place previously across Wales and nationally but had not resulted in any changes being made to the terms and conditions for sick pay entitlement. 

            Councillor Peter Curtis welcomed the report and said that he did not feel that changing the terms and conditions of employees would be the way forward and he added that enforcing the policies was key to reducing the levels of sickness absence. 

            Councillor Haydn Bateman queried whether the line managers should attend the meetings of the Committee when sickness absence was discussed.  The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development felt that the responsibility lay with the service heads and that their role included managing sickness absence.  In response to an earlier discussion about the implementation of the Council’s policy, she added that employees had been dismissed due to poor attendance.  Councillor Mike Lowe asked whether the use of the physiotherapy pilot scheme had been benchmarked.  Councillor Arnold Woolley suggested that the management of attendance should be included in the appraisal of supervisors and line managers to change the culture of sickness absence.  The Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development confirmed that this was one of the core objectives in their appraisals and that this had not previously been included.  In response to a query raised, she also confirmed that seven employees had had treatment following an assessment with the physiotherapist and had since returned to the workplace. 

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the on-going work to address attendance levels and the underlying causes thereof be supported; and    

(b)       That the comments of Members during the meeting be borne in mind during the development and implementation of the policy.