Long term sickness absence is considered to be a continuous absence in excess of 4 weeks. Additional guidance is available in the Managing Sickness Absence Policy.

It is important that you maintain regular, informal contact with an employee who is absent from work. This can be by telephone/video calls, meetings in workplace or home visits. You should agree with the employee the process for keeping in touch; including how and when this will take place.

As a minimum you should normally meet the employee once they have been off for 4 weeks (but ideally sooner). Even where a meeting is not considered to be practical, appropriate contact must be maintained. A record of contact with the employee should be made on the Long term sickness absence contact record form.

Each contact must be handled sensitively. In some cases it may be appropriate to ask the employee if they would prefer another manager to be their contact. For example, if the employee states their issue relates to you as their manager. Specific contact arrangements should take account of the nature of the employee's illness and, where appropriate, Occupational Health advice. For example, there may be occasions where it may be agreed that an employee with a mental health condition can, for a period of time email their line manager with updates rather than calling in. Any such arrangement should be agreed with the employee and kept under regular review.

If the absence continues, meetings should normally be arranged at least every 2 months (absence review invite letter can be downloaded from the Strategies, policies, procedures and guidance page on the Intranet) to maintain contact and discuss ongoing absence. This will however depend on circumstances for example where the employee's condition or personal circumstances/ Occupational Health advice indicate that a longer or shorter review period is appropriate.

While an informal approach is appropriate is it important to write to employees to confirm the outcome of discussions held at meetings. This could be done either by letter or email (the absence review meeting outcome letter can be downloaded from the Strategies, policies, procedures and guidance page on the Intranet). A copy of each letter/email should be uploaded to MyView.

Employees are also entitled to be accompanied at meetings by a trade union representative or companion of their choice.

Occupational Health advice is vital to managing long term sickness absence. In some instances, (such as where work related absence is suspected or in mental wellbeing or musculoskeletal cases) immediate referral should be considered. If this has not been done sooner, employees should normally be referred when they have been absent for over 4 weeks. Referrals should be made on the OH online portal.

HR can advise on the advice given in Occupational Health reports as required.

If the report includes inaccurate information you should provide updated information to Occupational Health where necessary. In complex cases, a case management discussion can be arranged involving Occupational Health, the manager and the employee.

In all other cases, after the referral, you should arrange a meeting with the employee to discuss the report. The advice given will normally fall into one of the following categories: 

Ensure that the employee agrees with this recommendation and discuss the proposed reintroduction to work. If a temporary period of part-time working, or alternative work is recommended in the report, you should make every effort to accommodate this advice if it is operationally possible. Refer to Phased Return to Work.

You must comply with the disability provisions of the Equality Act, which places a responsibility on the Council to make reasonable adjustments to meet the needs of a disabled employee.

Occupational Health will make recommendations on any modifications or adaptations which may assist the employee. You should discuss these with the employee and assess whether they can be practically and reasonably supported. A Workplace Adjustment Passport Form should be completed and retained on MyView to record any agreed modifications. HR can advise as appropriate.

Discuss the option of redeployment with the employee. If no suitable alternative employment can be found, or the employee refuses a reasonable offer of alternative employment, check with Occupational Health whether ill health retirement is an option. If not, and all other options have been ruled out, proceed to a Capability Hearing.

If a pension scheme member meets the criteria for ill health retirement a Certificate of Permanent Ill Health will be issued by Occupational Health.  
 
In some cases however, Occupational Health may indicate that the employee meets the medical criteria for a certificate to be issued but there is some reason why this cannot be done. This may be because the employee is not a scheme member, has not been in the scheme for long enough or is older than their state retirement age. In such cases the employee should be advised that they will be referred to a formal Capability Hearing or informal meeting if they agree.

Returning to "normal working" after a prolonged period of absence can prove difficult for an employee. When an employee has been off on long-term sick leave and they are ready to come back to work, it is essential that their return is planned and managed effectively.

A phased return to work is recommended for most employees who have been off long-term.

Occupational Health can advise on a return to work plan. You should agree the details of how this plan should be implemented with the employee taking into account both their view and service needs.

A phased return to work is not compulsory nor is it a right and implementation will be at management discretion. Where possible, it should however be accommodated by the service. If this is not possible however, you should consider alternative approaches and seek advice from Occupational Health. You should also explain to the employee why this cannot be accommodated.

This should be confirmed in writing to the employee and a copy of this confirmation uploaded to MyView.  

In implementing a phased return to work managers may consider the following on a temporary basis: 

• Reduced hours
• Alteration to shift pattern/ days
• Restricted/ modified duties
• Buddy system/ mentor
• Temporary relocation/ redeployment

A return to work plan should form a written document which includes the following:

• A programme or timetable showing the days/hours the employee is expected to work and showing the gradual increase back to normal working hours over the period of the phased return.
• The period of the phased return – based on Occupational Health advice and normally no longer then 6 weeks, unless  in exceptional.
• Any other issues such as restrictions or modifications to the job role.
• A date to review the plan.
• Details of annual leave and/or special leave used to facilitate the phased return to work. Confirm for example, how much annual leave which would otherwise have been lost through abatement (see Managing Sickness Absence Policy on abatement of leave) is to be used as non-working days. If there is not enough abated leave to cover non-working time, paid special leave will be given to ensure that the employee receives their normal salary during the period of phased return.  
• If Occupational Health advise that an employee should work less than their contracted hours for a longer phased return period than 6 weeks, you should agree with the employee how this will be accommodated and reflect this in the programme. For example, it may be necessary for the employee to agree to reduce their contractual working hours on a temporary basis. Any such change would be reflected in their salary for that period. Alternatively the employee may choose to take some of their remaining annual leave allocation to cover this. HR can advise on the appropriate approach to take in such cases.

You should monitor the return to work and review the employee's progress as required during the programme and before a return to full normal working arrangements. Further Occupational Health advice can be sought at anytime as necessary. The phased return should be a short-term measure and employees should be encouraged to build up to normal employment within as short a timescale as is reasonable given their medical condition. HR can advise as required. 

For any sickness absence that is as a result of a critical or terminal illness, you should be extremely sensitive and understanding. With cancer or other critical illnesses an employee may be off long term sick or may be able to work between treatment and medical appointments. You should keep in regular contact with an employee who is off long term sick with a critical illness just as you would with any other employee with a long term illness. You should also seek advice from Occupational Health regarding when would be an appropriate time to refer the employee.

An employee with a critical illness who is fit enough to be at work must be given support from their line manager. Time off should be granted for specialist treatment and medical appointments, with self-certification used to cover periods of related illness. Where necessary, adjustments to working hours and/or equipment should be made to accommodate effects of the illness and its treatment.    

For employees who are on long term sick leave as a result of sensitive illnesses and whose sick pay has expired, managers may  discuss with Human Resources  whether unpaid special leave would be appropriate and beneficial. Approval for any such leave would then need to be sought from the relevant Chief Officer.  

The employee's case is referred to a capability hearing/informal meeting with the potential outcome being termination of employment on the grounds of ill health (see How to guide on capability hearings). This may be the case if it is considered an employee will be permanently unfit for employment (ie Certificate of Permanent Ill Health is issued by Occupational Health), or is unlikely to return to work in the near future.

Factors to consider

Factors to consider in determining whether it is appropriate to progress to a Capability Hearing are noted below:

• Length of the absence/ anticipated return – If a return appears to be unlikely within reasonable timescales and/or if the employee has been off for several months, it may be appropriate to refer to a capability hearing.
• Impact on service delivery – The absence of some employees may have a more significant impact on service delivery than others so their cases may need to be progressed more quickly to a hearing. Any additional costs associated with the absence (such as paying for temporary or casual cover) should also be considered. It is necessary however to be mindful of the need to take a fair and consistent approach to managing capability.
• Disability provisions of Equality Act 2010 – The Equality Act places the onus on the employer to consider adaptations which could be made to an employee's substantive post to allow their return to work, or to assess the possibility of the employee being redeployed to a more suitable post. See Equality Act 2010 Summary for further guidance. This means that consideration should be given to reasonable adjustments which could be made to enable an employee to remain working in their own post before progressing to a capability hearing. If this is not considered to be possible, consideration must also be given to whether redeployment is appropriate. This includes seeking guidance from Occupational Health and discussing the outcome with the employee.

• Employee perceives that work has caused or contributed to the ill health – you must fully explore this with the employee and document the discussions before considering referral to a capability hearing. Reasonable steps must be taken to try and address the employee's concerns. For example, for a work related stress absence a Stress Risk Assessment should have been completed. A meeting should have been held to discuss the outcome of the assessment and confirmation of the discussions/ actions agreed issued to the employee.
• Industrial injury/potential insurance claim – If the absence is due to an industrial injury which has the potential to result in an insurance claim, seek guidance from the Insurance Section before progressing to a hearing.
• Pregnancy related absence – You must consult Human Resources to discuss the situation before taking any action if the employee's absence is pregnancy related or linked to postnatal issues.
  Drug and Alcohol Policy – Where this policy applies, the employee's absence can still be considered at a Capability Hearing. There would however need to be evidence that the requirements of the Drug and Alcohol Policy in terms of supporting the employee have been followed as appropriate.
• Occupational Sick Pay Allowance – Consideration of this may be particularly relevant if the employee has only a short period of allowance. The timescales of managing their absence may need to be altered in order to take account of any hardship which could result from the absence. Entitlement to a particular amount of occupational sick pay does not mean that the employee must remain in employment until their sick pay has ended. There remains an onus on the employer to assess the employee's capability to continue in employment. For example, if a Certificate of Permanent Ill Health is issued after one month's illness, this will normally result in termination of employment. Occupational sick pay can only be paid while an individual remains in employment.
• Occupational Health advice – Occupational Health advice will always be required when managing long term sickness absence. This advice will inform many of the factors to be considered when determining whether it is appropriate to proceed to a hearing. For example, whether an employee is eligible for ill health retirement. A medical report must have been obtained in the 12 week period before the employee is referred to a capability hearing. There may be cases where an Occupational Health report states that a medical opinion is needed from the employee's GP/specialists to enable further advice to be given. An Occupational Health report giving advice having received this information should normally be received before proceeding to a capability hearing.
• In all cases – there must be evidence that the employee's absence has been discussed with them and their companion (where appropriate) in line with the guidance noted above. You must be able to evidence that the possibility of dismissal as a result of capability proceedings has been raised with the employee in at least one meeting and has been confirmed in writing. The employee should also have been made aware of the impact of their absence on the Council and the service they deliver. In exceptional circumstances where an employee is so seriously ill that they cannot take part in such discussions, seek guidance from HR on the appropriate approach.

In some cases there is a requirement for an employee's professional body to be notified of concerns regarding their health impacting on their fitness to practice and/or when an employee is dismissed due to incompetence. For example, SSSC may need to be advised in cases where a registered employee has a  health condition which they have not taken steps to manage appropriately/ have not been open and honest with their employer about, where this affects the safety of service users. Referral should also be made in some cases where an employee is dismissed on the grounds of capability. Please contact hrhelpdesk@falkirk.gov.uk for information on how to make professional registration referrals. 

Prior to a hearing, having managed the employee through the capability process, you should submit a Capability report (a copy can be found on the  Strategies, policies, procedures and guidance page on the Intranet) to the Service Manager outlining the case for consideration. You must be able to evidence in the report that the relevant points noted above have been addressed and that the employee's case has been managed appropriately.

Where a Certificate of Permanent Ill Health is issued by Occupational Health, employment with Falkirk Council may be terminated via an informal or formal hearing and, where appropriate, pension benefits paid. For employees in the Local Government Pension Scheme, 2 levels of ill health retirement may be awarded:

• Level 1 - where there is no reasonable prospect of the employee being able to undertake gainful employment before reaching their state pension age. With the pension award based on service enhanced to state pension age.
• Level 2 - where there is some reasonable prospect of the employee being able to undertake gainful employment before reaching their state pension age. With the pension award based on service enhanced by 25% of the difference between the employee's current age and their state pension age. 

First Instance Decision Maker Process

The Council follows the First Instance Decision Maker (FIDM) process as defined under section 3.1 of the Local Government IHR Guide (PDF, 702KB). The First Instance Decision Maker is usually a manager at Service Manager level or higher, who is able to make a decision on behalf of the service, but who has not been directly involved in the case prior to carrying out this role.  

Appeal

A Level 2 award will not provide full pension entitlements. For this reason the employee has the right to appeal against the medical decision to award the lower level of ill health retirement. 

Local Government Pension Scheme members who are not issued with a Certificate of Permanent Ill Health, because they are not considered to meet the criteria for ill health retirement, can also submit an appeal against this decision. 

Any such appeal should be made in writing to the Director of Transformation, Communities & Corporate Services. This should be lodged within 6 months of the date of the letter advising of the decision regarding the pension award.  

If the employee is dissatisfied with the outcome of this appeal [Stage One], they have the right to refer the matter to the Scottish Ministers for their determination. This is known as a Stage Two appeal, and must be lodged within 6 months of the Stage One decision. 

You should confirm the decision regarding ill health retirement in writing and, where appropriate, notify the employee of their right to appeal (appropriate letter can be downloaded from the Strategies, policies, procedures and guidance page on the Intranet).

The Scottish Public Pensions Agency (SPPA) scheme for teachers has different rules. This means that Teachers who are members of that scheme have to apply to the SPPA for early release of pension benefits on the grounds of ill health. The final decision lies with the SPPA, irrespective of the guidance provided by the Council's Occupational Health Service.