ManagingAttendance

Policy1st March 2017

Managing Attendance Policy

Document Author(s): Kate Redmond, Executive Assistant K.Redmond@ljmu.ac.uk

Relevant to: All staff

Responsibility for Policy: Chief Executive and Trustees

Responsibility for document review: Executive Assistant

Document introduced: 1st November 2013

Next Review Date: 1st March 2020*

*The Chief Executive reserves the right to amend this document at any time should the need arise

Any questions with regards to this policy can be directed to Kate Redmond, Executive Assistant

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ContentsPage

Purpose 3

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Statement 3

Annual leave 3

Sickness absence 4-7

Maternity leave*If you, the staff member are pregnant 7-9

Partners leave*If your partner is pregnant 9-10

Adoptive and Surrogacy leave*For parents adopting a child/ children or expecting via a surrogate 9-10

Parental leave*To care for child/children 10-11

Grandparents leave*Where you become a grandparent 11

Medical and dental appointments 11

Court appearances*Jury, witness or defendant 11

Domestic incidents and compassionate leave 12

Flexible working requests 12

Emergency leave entitlement 13-14

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PurposeTo provide a framework for a positive and pro-active approach to the management of attendance.

It is LiverpoolSU’s priority to provide a supportive, safe and inclusive working environment that encourages all employees to manage their health and wellbeing and maintain their attendance at work.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion StatementWe are committed to promoting equality, diversity and inclusion for the benefit of our diverse workforce and student population. LiverpoolSU will provide the necessary support to employees, ensuring everyone is treated in a consistent and fair manner.

Annual leaveCore StaffFor core staff annual leave entitlement is stated in the employment contract (and shown in the totals of your electronic time sheet). In order to request annual leave you need to seek approval from your line manager. To do so please send an outlook calendar invitation*. Your line manager will either approve the request or they may require more information. If a holiday request is ever refused, you can expect a full explanation from your line manager.

*Please send your annual leave request as an event in your outlook calendar to your line manager so that it shows in yours and your line manager’s calendar but not in the main section.

Ideally you need to put the request in at least 1 month prior to your wanting to take the time off, however the decision is at the discretion of your line manager.

Staff are also able to request Duvet Days (short notice annual leave days) up to a maximum of 4 per annum that are deducted from your annual leave entitlement. These are approved at the discretion of your line manager and will subject to there being no prior diary commitments or other departmental requirements. LiverpoolSU would appreciate that you give at least one day notice of a duvet day request but in some circumstances would consider on the day requests subject to your diary being completely clear.

The annual leave year runs from 1st August to the next succeeding 31st July. The Union strongly believes that it is important for all staff to take time off to recharge and to partake in other interests so we encourage staff to take all of their holiday entitlement each year. Only in exceptional circumstances (maternity leave, parental leave, long term sickness etc) and subject to approval by the Chief Executive may you carry up to 35 hours leave (or part-time equivalent) over into the start of the next academic year. Any leave that is carried over must be used no later than 31st December. If you do not use all of your holiday entitlement you will lose it.

Please note we would not expect staff to request to take annual leave in welcome week and only exceptionally in the first term as this is our busiest member focused time of year. Term-time holidays are granted at the discretion of your line manager.

Student StaffStudent staff holiday pay is calculated and paid at intervals through the year.Holidays are to be paid in December, April and August pay and calculated at a rate of 12.07% of the hourly rate of pay.

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Sickness absence

Union Sickness Benefit Scheme for Core StaffLiverpool Students’ Union may continue to pay you your normal basic salary during any period or periods of absence due to sickness or other similar cause incapacitating you from attending for work. Such payment will be inclusive of any statutory sick pay or other benefits to which you may be entitled. Within a period of any 52 weeks, payment of sickness benefit will be made as follows, according to length of continuous service at the start of the period of sick leave. Please note as per table below that during probationary period (the first 26-weeks of employment) staff are only entitled to statutory sick pay:

Length of Service Full Pay Half PayBefore 26 Weeks SSP only SSP onlyAfter 26 Weeks 2 weeks 2 weeksAfter 12 Months 2 months (8 weeks) 2 months (8 weeks)After 24 Months 3 months (13 weeks) 3 months (13 weeks)After 36 Months 4 months (17 weeks) 4 months (17 weeks)After 48 Months 5 months (21 weeks) 5 months (21 weeks)After 60 Months 6 months (26 weeks) 6 months (26 weeks)

Sick pay allowance is calculated by deducting the above entitlement (length of service) with any taken periods of paid absence due to sick leave during the 52 weeks after the first day of absence.

If an employee exhausts their full pay entitlement, they will not be entitled to full pay sick leave until 12 months has elapsed from their return to work.

The full pay entitlement is the amount required to bring any sick pay up to the equivalent of the employee’s normal weekly earnings.

The ‘normal weekly earnings’ for the purposes of sick pay will be based on an average of the last 12 weeks.

The SSP (Statutory Sick Pay) benefit to be taken into account is the full SSP rate to which the employee is entitled on the basis that they satisfy the criteria stipulated by the Benefits Agency.

Where absence results from injury and where a member of staff makes a claim against a third party, a calculation of pay received from the Union should be included in the claim. If the claim is successful, the member of staff must inform the Chief Executive and an amount equivalent to this calculation of pay must be returned to the Union. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action.

The requirement to make a refund from damages received does not extend to any sum awarded by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board.

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Absence procedure that you must follow to be eligible for sick pay (applies to both Core Staff and Student Staff)If you are unable to come into work you must ring your line manager or supervisor by 8.45am or at least 2 hours before the start of your shift. In the absence of your line manager you should ring Reception (from 9am) and report your absence to them. Upon your return to work you are required to attend a return to work meeting with your line manager (or designated representative in their absence) on your return. When reporting absence, you must include the following;

Why you are absent An indication of how long you expect to be away If you have any appointments that need to be cancelled or tasks reallocated Contact details in case your line manager needs to clarify anything with you

You must repeat the above process for every day that you are absent unless agreed otherwise by your line manager.

Eligibility for sick pay, Statutory sick pay (SSP) & Union Sickness Benefit SchemeYou are required to comply with this policy in order to qualify for any sick pay that is due to you. If these procedures are not followed, sick pay may be withheld.

On your 4th day away from work (including weekends) you must self-certify by filling in an ‘Employees Statement of Sickness’ (SC2). This needs to be brought into the Union immediately. Copies are available from your line manager, your doctor’s surgery or electronically at www.hmrc.gov.uk/forms/sc2.pdf .

If you have been away from work for more than 7 days you will need to forward a medical certificate (statement of fitness for work) to the Executive Assistant to enable the Union to decide if you are eligible for sick pay.

More information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/taking-sick-leave .

Where you have been involved in an incident that means you are unable to contact the Union immediately then you must inform the Union as soon as possible.

In instances of frequent short term absence and long term absence, the Union reserves the right to refer employees to an independent medical advisor of our choosing. Subject to your eligibility, absences due to illness lasting up to 7 days (including the weekend), which have been notified to the Union, will be authorised for payment as detailed below.

Statutory Sick PayCore staff of LiverpoolSU are eligible for statutory sick pay only, from the fourth day of sickness that would have been a normal working day, providing that notification and evidence has been submitted in accordance with the Union’s Managing Attendance Policy.

Return to WorkImmediately upon your return to work you will be expected to complete a ‘return to work’ form at a meeting your line manager. The form is to;

Establish the reason for the absence See if the absence is likely to recur See if there are any underlying causes to the absenteeism See what, if any, further support you need from the Union.

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Return to work form and guidelines can be found at: Z:HR\LineManagers\RTW\RTWForm and Z: HR\LineManagers\RTW\RTWguidelines

Persistent Short Term AbsenceMost short term absence is for genuine reasons and is likely to end within seven days and the most common reasons for short term absence are:

minor illness; stress; musculoskeletal disorders; recurring medical conditions; back pain.

Persistent short-term absence review would be triggered where you have been absent from work on 6 occasions within 24 months. Once you hit 6 occasions in any 24 months or if you are considered to have a history of persistent short-term absence, the Chief Executive will be asked to attend the return to work interview with your line manager. Where you have offered no medical evidence you may be asked to consult your doctor or a designated Union Occupational Therapist to establish whether medical treatment is necessary or whether the underlying reason for absence is work related. If, after investigation, it appears that there were no good reasons for absence, the matter will be dealt with through the Union disciplinary procedure.

However, the Union reserves the right in cases of persistent short-term absence to review your continuous employment after due warning and consultation, even where there are good medical or other good reasons for absence.

Where such absence is the result of a temporary domestic situation, the Union will consider what flexibility, if any, can be offered.

In all cases you will be informed, in writing, what improvements are required and warned of the likely consequences if this does not happen.

Long Term Absence Long term absence is an absence that has or is likely to last more than 4-weeks.

Where it is likely that you will be unable to work for some time due to illness the Union will maintain regular contact with both you and, with your consent your GP. The level of contact will be negotiated between you and your line manager but will usually be at least fortnightly. Your GP will be asked when a return to work is expected and of what type of work you are capable of doing. Where alternative work is available the Union may suggest it. At any stage the Union may ask you to visit a designated Union Occupational Therapist to undergo an independent medical examination that you are required to attend.

The Union reserves the right to review your continued employment in cases of long term absence. Listed below are some examples of causes of long-term absence. This list is not-exhaustive and would consider other reasons for absence too:

Acute medical conditions. Musculoskeletal injuries. Stress. Mental ill health. Back pain.

Long Term Return to Work6

Upon your return to work, you will be expected to attend a ‘return to work’ meeting with your line manager and the Chief Executive. The discussion is to;

Begin an induction programme back into work Inform you of any changes that have occurred whilst you have been absent Update you on any new procedures, colleagues and tools Agree objectives to enable you to manage a successful return to work Check if you need any further support from your line manager/Union.

Return to work form and guidelines can be found at: Z:HR\LineManagers\RTW\RTWForm and Z: HR\LineManagers\RTW\RTWguidelines

Maternity leave

This is an ever changing area of employment law and this section exceeds statutory minimum requirements at March 2017. Please refer to http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/WorkAndFamilies/DG_10026556 for more details of the statutory rights of pregnant women.

Employees can take up to 52 weeks’ maternity leave. The first 26 weeks is known as ‘Ordinary Maternity Leave’, the last 26 weeks as ‘Additional Maternity Leave’.

If you find you are pregnant then you need to inform the Union of your pregnancy at least 15 weeks before the beginning of the week your baby is due. However the Union would advise that you let us know as early as possible so we can:

Allow you paid reasonable time off to attend ante natal appointments – as well as medical appointments these appointments can include relaxation and parenting classes if recommended by your doctor (the Union requests that you make appointments outside of working hours where you can).

Do a pregnancy risk assessment (employee and line manager) of your work station and duties to ensure the Union is a safe place for you to work. The risks might be lifting or carrying heavy loads; standing or sitting for long periods; exposure to toxic substances and working long hours. We will make every effort to minimise all risks but if it is not possible to remove the risk or prevent you being exposed to it (by providing alternative work) we may need to suspend you from work on full pay.

Plan to cover your absence (employee, line manager and HR). Any female member of staff shall be entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave and to return to work in the Union. The maternity leave can start any time from the 11th week before the baby is due. You must give the Union at least 21 days written notice of when the baby is due and when you intend to start maternity leave.

If you're off work for a pregnancy-related illness during the four weeks before your baby is due, your maternity leave will start automatically, no matter what you had agreed with the Union.

Even if you've decided not to take Statutory Maternity Leave, you must take two weeks off after your baby is born. This is called 'compulsory maternity leave'.

You can still take maternity leave if your child is: stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy or born alive at any point of the pregnancy.

Statutory Maternity Pay

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If you have worked for the Union continuously for more than 26 weeks by the 15th week before your baby is due and earn an average of at least £97 a week (before tax) you will be eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) for up to 39 weeks provided you meet the conditions.

If you have the right to SMP, you'll receive it even if you decide to leave employment with the Union before you start receiving SMP. You don't have to repay it if you decide not to go back to work or leave your job whilst claiming SMP.

If you receive SMP, your employer will pay you 90% of your average weekly earnings (before tax) for the first 6 weeks and up to £139.58 or 90% of your average weekly earnings (whichever is lower) for the remaining 33 weeks.

You pay tax and National Insurance in the same way as your regular wages. To qualify for SMP you must pay tax and national insurance as an employee (or would pay if you earned enough).

As a LiverpoolSU employee you can choose when you want your SMP to start, this will normally coincide with your Ordinary Maternity Leave. Unless your baby is born sooner, the earliest SMP can start is 11 weeks before the week your baby is due.

If you can't claim Statutory Maternity Pay, you may be able to claim Maternity Allowance instead.

If you don't qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance, you may be able to get some Incapacity Benefit or a Sure Start Maternity Grant if you or your partner or civil partner are claiming benefits or tax credits. Please seek advice from the Benefits Agency or the website at the start of this section.

LiverpoolSU Maternity PayIf you have worked for the Union for one year by the 15th week before your baby is due;

You will be entitled to full pay, reduced by the amount of SMP/benefits you receive from the state, for up to 13 weeks from the start of your maternity leave

This will be followed by a further 13 weeks at half pay, again reduced by the amount of SMP/benefits you receive from the State

This will be followed by a further 13 weeks SMP (subject to you qualifying for SMP) You will be entitled to take a further 13 weeks unpaid.

Keep In Touch Days

It is important to keep in touch during maternity leave and ease eventual return to work. You can during your SMP pay period for up to 10 days without ending your maternity leave or losing your SMP for the week in which you work. These 10 days are called ‘Keeping in Touch’ (KIT) days and enable LiverpoolSU to undertake the odd day’s training or do some work for you on occasions.

LiverpoolSU cannot demand that such KIT work is undertaken and you have no obligation to undertake such work. Before any work is done, it must be agreed:

best way of keeping in touch and opting into communications what work will be carried out whether the KIT days are used consecutively, singly or in blocks, but any work on any

day (even as little as an hour) will count as a whole KIT day

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how much you will be paid for work done - LiverpoolSU may count the amount of SMP towards the contractual pay agreed with you but must pay the weekly SMP rate you are entitled to and comply with your statutory obligations.

If work more than 10 days during your SMP pay period LiverpoolSU can’t pay SMP to you for any week in which you do such work and your maternity leave will come to an end.

Once you have used 10 KIT days, you will lose one week’s SMP for each week or part week that you work.

The SMP pay period is not extended to take account of any such weeks. Any SMP lost in this way is always at the standard rate first, or 90% of the AWE if this is lower than the standard rate.

Returning to WorkWhilst you are away on maternity leave the Union will, where possible, keep your position open for your return. Where we are unable to do so, we will offer a suitable alternative.

You need to give the Union at least one week’s written notice of your intention to return to work. This needs to be attached to a medical certificate that states you are fit to return to work plus a written statement from you of your intention to stay in work with the Union for at least 3 months after your return. If you do not stay in work for at least 3 months after your return to work the Union is entitled to recoup all or part of any occupational maternity pay you will have received.

Upon your return to work, you will be expected to complete a ‘return to work’ form with your line manager. The discussion is;

To begin an induction programme back into work To inform you of any changes that have occurred whilst you have been absent Update you on any new procedures, colleagues and tools Agree objectives to enable you to manage a successful return to work Check if you need any further support from your line manager/Union.

Partners leaveWhere your partner is pregnant, has had or adopted a child you will be entitled to 4 weeks full paid paternity leave. You can choose to take this time in a block or over the course of the first year of the child’s life.

You may also negotiate further holiday with your line manager or unpaid leave with the Chief Executive.

If your partner has a multiple birth, you're only allowed one period of partners leave.

You can still take partners leave if your child is: stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy or born alive at any point of the pregnancy.

To qualify for leave, you must inform the Chief Executive in writing at least 15 weeks before the beginning of the week when the baby's due outlining when the baby is due; how you wish to take the leave and when you want the leave to start. A simple way to give notice is to fill in

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a 'self-certificate'. You can download Form SC3 'Becoming a parent', which works as a self-certificate. www.gov.uk/paternity-pay-leave/how-to-claim

You can change the date that the leave starts, provided you give 28 days' notice.

If you can't give the full notice period to LiverpoolSU for a valid reason (e.g. if the baby arrives early), you should still give as much notice as possible. You may still receive leave and pay if you meet the other conditions. If there is no valid reason (e.g. you simply forgot) we would try to accommodate your request but could not guarantee it, this will be at the discretion of the Chief Executive.

Shared Parental LeaveYou may also be eligible for Shared Parental Leave (SPL) if your child was due or placed for

adoption on or after 5 April 2015.

You can’t take Partners Leave after you take SPL.

Leave for antenatal appointmentsYou can take paid leave to accompany your partner to 2 antenatal appointments if you’re:

the baby’s father the expectant mother’s spouse or civil partner in a long-term relationship with the expectant mother the intended parent (if you’re having a baby through a surrogacy arrangement)

You can take up to 6 and a half hours per appointment.

You can apply for leave immediately if you’re a permanent employee.

Adoptive and Surrogacy leavePaid adoption and surrogacy leave is available to employees who are adopting or expecting a child via surrogacy. The couple can decide who'll take the paid leave. The other member of the couple, or the partner of the adopter, would be eligible to take paid partners leave.

If you have worked for the Union continuously for 26 weeks and have been notified of being matched with a child for adoption by an approved adoption agency then you may be entitled to adoption leave and Statutory Adoptive Pay (SAP).

Statutory Adoption Leave is for 52 weeks. Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP) is for up to 39 weeks, up to £139.58 per week.

If you have worked for the Union for one year you would be entitled to LiverpoolSU Adoptive Pay which is the equivalent to maternity pay;

You will be entitled to full pay, reduced by the amount of benefit you receive from the state, for up to 13 weeks from the start of the adoptive leave

This will be followed by a further 13 weeks at half pay, again reduced by the amount of benefit you receive from the State

This will be followed by a further 13 weeks SAP You will be entitled to take a further 13 weeks unpaid.

Where the parents work for different organisations you must inform the Chief Executive of the details of your partner’s employer so we can discuss benefit allowances.

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For more information please take a look at: https://www.gov.uk/adoption-pay-leave/overview

Parental leaveIf you have a child under the age of 18 years old you are entitled to take up to 18 weeks parental leave.

The first 10 days of which will be paid at full pay. Any further parental leave will be unpaid

Where possible, you must give 21 days’ notice using the Union’s annual leave procedure.

If you are unable to come into work please follow the absence procedure.

Upon your return you will need to complete a return to work form with your line manager.

Grandparents leaveEmployees who become grandparents will be allowed 3 days paid leave to allow them to support their children around the birth or adoption of a grandchild. Employees will also be entitled to an additional 7 days unpaid leave on top of their paid entitlement.

Medical and dental appointmentsThe Union expects you to attend medical and dental appointments outside of your normal working time. However we appreciate this may not always be possible and may seek to allow you time off utilising the annualised hours system.

Court appointmentsThe Union recognises you may have to attend Court as a member of a jury, witness, etc. If you are to be a member of a jury this will be paid working hours, as the Court will repay your expenses (and LiverpoolSU will make up any difference if necessary).

If you are a witness you will be expected to take the hours as non-working time and that needs to be authorised by your line manager. If you are a witness to an incident that took place whilst you were at work this may be classed as working time – you will need to seek guidance from your line manager.

If you are a defendant you need to be aware that the Union reserves the right to consider disciplinary action, if appropriate. The Union will need to consider what implications your situation has, whether there is a conflict of interest or if the Union may be being brought into disrepute. If, for any reason, you fail to inform the Union that you are in court as a defendant then the matter will be dealt with through the Union disciplinary procedure and may be considered gross misconduct.

Domestic issues and compassionate leaveAs the Union recognises its employees may have commitments outside of the work place we seek to be flexible and may allow employees to take holiday to cover a domestic crisis or can agree compassionate or emergency leave that may be paid or unpaid. This will be at the

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discretion of the appropriate line manager (please refer to the emergency leave entitlements table on page 13-14).

Domestic issues may include; Illness of child, partner, parent, other person that may be considered dependent

upon you Bereavement Breakdown of a long term relationship Emergency in the home If you have to leave work in the event of an emergency then you should; Contact your line manager or Reception to inform them of the situation Arrange temporary cover for your area – where this is not possible you may in

severe circumstances, with your line manager’s authorisation, close your area until alternative arrangements can be organised by your line manager

If you still need to be absent the following day then follow the absence procedure.

Upon your return you will need to complete a return to work form with your line manager.

If you have any queries about this policy please direct them to your line manager.

Flexible working requests

LiverpoolSU welcomes applications to work flexibly and will make decisions based on the needs of the business and not on the merit or worthiness of an application.

Proposals/requests should be put in writing in the first instance to your line manager as should there be an appeal from this process the Chief Executive would hear the appeal. Proposals/requests should outline:

your requested work pattern (e.g. 3 days a week 9-5) Your entitlement to the request (e.g. having worked at LiverpoolSU for over 26 weeks) Any effects you anticipate and any changes this will have on LiverpoolSU as a business if

you change your hours AND how this might be accommodated OR addressed to make it work (e.g. student to cover etc etc).

You can request a template form from Kate Redmond, Executive Assistant K.Redmond@ljmu.ac.uk

Further information can also be found at: https://www.gov.uk/flexible-working/overview

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LiverpoolSU Emergency Leave Table

CircumstancesConditions Type of Leave Length Paid or Unpaid Authorised by:

Bereavement or Critical Illness

Death or critical illness of: Husband/Wife/Partner Immediate blood relative ( I.e. Parent,

sibling, child, grandparent, etc) Partners immediate family A 'dependent' who relies on employee to

deal with administrative matters relating to the death

More distant relative if constitutes a 'special relationship' (E.g. Someone who acted as a guardian or performed the role of one of the relatives above)

Compassionate Leave

Upto5 Days

Further Leave

Paid

Unpaid or taken as Annual Leave

Chief Executive Management team

Other Bereavement Death of: Distant relative Friend or acquaintance

Annual Leave/Lieu Discretion of Chief Executive

Annual Leave/Lieu

Chief Executive

Time off for dependents

Leave can be taken in the following circumstances: If a dependent falls ill or has been injured

or assaulted When a dependent is having a baby To make longer term care arrangements

for a dependent who is ill or injured To deal with an unexpected disruption or

breakdown of care arrangements for a dependent

To deal with an unexpected incident

Emergency Leave 1 day per incident

Further leave

Paid

Unpaid/ Annual Leave/Lieu

Line Manager

Chief Executive

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involving a 'dependent' child during school hours

Domestic Incident The following circumstances give an indication of when emergency leave will be granted: Fire, flood, theft or any other crisis at home

that requires your immediate attention Emergencies which could affect the safety

or security of the employee, their family, property or assets

Emergency Leave 1 day per incident

Further leave

Paid

Paid/Unpaid/ Annual Leave

Line Manager

Chief Executive

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