Appendix 6
Sickness Absence and
Management Information Workshop
Customer & Support Services
19th July 2006
Provided by Systems and Information Team
Before we begin
•Register
•Fire Exits
• Refreshments
• Mobile Phones
Session Objectives:
At the end of this session you:
• Will know what Management Information is available to you
from the Systems and Information Team.
• Will have identified what problems you are facing and how
they may be addressed.
• Be made aware of good practices from other Directorates
• Be made aware of the services available from the
Occupational Health Unit.
• Be made aware of the online sickness absence recording
form.
Management Information
• What do we currently provide?
– High level absence figures based on headcount. This set of
quarterly statistics show the short term/ long term/ total
sickness figures within each directorate, and an overall council
figure.
– The summary sheets give a high level view of activity within
the directorate, and further sets of charts are provided which
show the absence by reason.
Management Information
• What do we currently provide?
– BVPI Quarterly Performance Evaluation (QPE) report– a
breakdown of the corporate health BVPI’s. These figures are
distributed to each director and used for discussion at their
relevant QPE meeting.
– More detailed information is offered in terms of breaking down
the data and analysing where hotspots exist, and where
problems of a particular nature may be occurring.
Management Information
05/06 BVPI 12 AGMA comparisons
Low er is better
9.51
Tameside
10.41
Stockport
10.54
Salford
Tameside
10.68
Manchester
Stockport
Salford
10.9
Rochdale
Manchester
Rochdale
11.06
Trafford
Trafford
Bury
11.2
Bury
Bolton
Wigan
11.31
Bolton
Oldham
12.03
Wigan
12.13
Oldham
0
2
4
6
8
average days lost
10
12
14
Management Information
What’s the difference between
Headcount and the BVPI figures?
Management Information
• Why do we provide this information?
A key element of managing absence effectively is accurate
measurement and monitoring. We must assess if we have a
problem with absence, its extent and the best way to tackle it.
The reports we produce are not meant to take the place of
effective line management; they complement this by providing
information to aid decision-making.
Quick Quiz
Quiz
• For your Directorate which is higher, long term absence or
short term absence?
• What are the top 5 reasons for absence long term?
• What are the top 5 reasons for absence short term?
• Which area within your Directorate has the highest level of
absence?
• If the Directorates were listed, lowest absence first, where
would you be?
Answers
• For your Directorate which is higher, long term absence or
short term absence?
Short term absence – this represented 6,885 days lost compared
to 3,882 days lost for long term absence.
• What are the top 3 reasons for absence long term?
1.
2.
3.
Stress
Pending Reason
Other Muscular
Answers
• What are the top 3 reasons for absence Short Term?
1.
2.
3.
Infections
Stress
Stomach/Liver/Kidney
• Which area within your Directorate has the lowest level of
absence?
Human Resources
Answers
•
If the Directorates were listed, lowest absence first, where would you be?
Place
Directorate
% Absence
Average Days
Lost
1
Schools
2.9
7.6
2
Urban Vision
3.1
8.1
3
Chief Executive
3.9
10.1
3
Children’s Services
3.9
10.1
4
Housing & Planning
3.9
10.2
5
Environment
4.0
10.3
6
Customer & Support
Services
4.2
11.0
7
Community Health &
Social Care
5.4
14.1
Directorate Breakdown
Directorate Breakdown
Against Headcount the Directorate is :
•
0.4 days worse against last rolling quarter.
•
This is due to an increase in long term absence of 0.4 days
•
Operating at an average 11.4 days absence per person
overall.
Directorate Breakdown
Sub Area
Average Days Lost
(April 05 to March 06)
Comment
8 days
improvement of 1 day.
Finance
9.4 days
improvement of 0.6 days
HR
6.2 days
Improvement of 0.1 days
Law & Admin
10.2 days
Worse by 0.7 days
Customer Services
17.2 days
Worse by 2.1days
IT
Directorate Breakdown
Top 5 Reasons For Absence within the Directorate:
Reason
1. Stress
2. Infections
3. Stomach
4. Pending Reason
5. Other Muscular
Contribution to days lost
23.8%
16.2%
9.6%
9.5%
9.2%
Directorate Breakdown
Top 3 Reasons For Absence within the Directorate:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. Stress
35.5%
2. Pending
16.2%
3. Other Muscular
11.5%
Short Term
Reason
1. Infections
2. Stress
3. Stomach
Contribution to days lost (ST)
25.3%
17.1%
12.0%
Directorate Breakdown
Stress
This Directorate has lost more days to stress than any other
Directorate.
Since March05 the number of days lost to stress in this directorate
has gone up 58% from 1619 days to 2558 days.
Compared to a staffing increase of 0.5% over the same period of
time.
Directorate Breakdown
LAW & ADMIN - Account for 19% of staff in the Directorate
Top 3 Reasons for Absence
Reason
Days Lost
(Area)
Days Lost
(Directorate)
Reason
(Directorate)
Infections
18%
3.05%
18.92%
Other
Muscular
15.4%
2.6%
28.2%
Stress
13.7%
2.31%
9.73%
Directorate Breakdown
LAW & ADMIN - Account for 19% of staff in the Directorate
Top Reason For Absence within the Area:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. Other Muscular
27.1%
This equates to 4.61% of the Directorates Long Term Absence and 1.66% of
the Directorates absence overall.
Short Term
Reason
1. Infections
Contribution to days lost (ST)
28.3%
This equates to 4.76% of the Directorates Short Term Absence and
3.05% of the Directorates absence overall.
Directorate Breakdown
FINANCE - Account for 25% of staff in the Directorate
Top 3 Reasons for Absence
Reason
Days Lost
(Area)
Days Lost
(Directorate)
Reason
(Directorate)
Stress
31.3%
6.37%
26.82%
Pending
Reason
20.2%
4.11%
43.38%
Infections
13.9%
2.82%
17.48%
Directorate Breakdown
FINANCE - Account for 25% of staff in the Directorate
Top Reason For Absence within the Area:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. Stress
51.2%
This equates to 10.82% of the Directorates Long Term Absence and 3.9% of
the Directorates absence overall.
Short Term
Reason
1. Infections
Contribution to days lost (ST)
22.2%
This equates to 4.42% of the Directorates Short Term Absence and
2.82% of the Directorates absence overall.
Directorate Breakdown
IT - Account for 13% of staff in the Directorate
Top 3 Reasons for Absence
Reason
Days Lost
(Area)
Days Lost
(Directorate)
Reason
(Directorate)
Infections
29.4%
2.72%
16.85%
Stress
26.4%
2.44%
10.28%
Stomach
12.2%
1.12%
11.78%
Directorate Breakdown
IT - Account for 13% of staff in the Directorate
Top Reason For Absence within the Area:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. Stress
72.3%
This equates to 5.59% of the Directorates Long Term Absence and 2.02% of
the Directorates absence overall.
Short Term
Reason
1. Infections
Contribution to days lost (ST)
42.2%
This equates to 4.26% of the Directorates Short Term Absence and
2.72% of the Directorates absence overall.
Directorate Breakdown
Customer Services - Account for 31% of staff in the Directorate
Top 3 Reasons for Absence
Reason
Days Lost
(Area)
Days Lost
(Directorate)
Reason
(Directorate)
Stress
25.1%
11.84%
49.84%
Infections
12.7%
5.99%
37.09%
Stomach
10.1%
4.77%
50.04%
Directorate Breakdown
Customer Services - Account for 31% of staff in the Directorate
Top Reason For Absence within the Area:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. Stress
29.3%
This equates to 15.35% of the Directorates Long Term Absence and 5.54%
of the Directorates absence overall.
Short Term
Reason
1. Stress
Contribution to days lost (ST)
22.4%
This equates to 9.86% of the Directorates Short Term Absence and
6.31% of the Directorates absence overall.
Directorate Breakdown
Human Resources - Account for 12% of staff in the Directorate
Top 3 Reasons for Absence
Reason
Days Lost
(Area)
Days Lost
(Directorate)
Reason
(Directorate)
Infections
24.6%
1.57%
9.72%
Chest &
Respiratory
13.1%
0.84%
16.61%
Stress
12.4%
0.79%
3.32%
Directorate Breakdown
Human Resources - Account for 12% of staff in the Directorate
Top Reason For Absence within the Area:
Long Term
Reason
Contribution to days lost (LT)
1. n/a for data protection reasons
Short Term
Reason
1. Infections
Contribution to days lost (ST)
27.1%
This equates to 2.45% of the Directorates Short Term Absence and
1.57% of the Directorates absence overall.
Directorate Breakdown
SALARY
Establishment
Split
Days Off
% Days Off
6.11%
1013
9.41%
10k + to 20k
37.26%
5597
51.98%
20k+ to 30k
38.53%
3266
30.33%
30k+ to 40k
14.42%
831
7.72%
40k and over
3.68%
60
0.56%
Totals
100%
10767
100%
Under 10k
Directorate Breakdown
GENDER
Establishment
Split
Days Off
% Days Off
Female
65.15%
8551
79.42%
Male
34.85%
2216
20.58%
100%
10767
100%
Totals
Directorate Breakdown
AGE
Establishment
Split
Days Off
% Days Off
Under 20
0.42%
24
0.22%
20 to 30
17.02%
2123
19.72%
31 to 40
30.55%
2732
25.37%
41 to 50
29.70%
3412
31.69%
51 to 60
19.13%
2129
19.77%
60 +
3.17%
347
3.22%
Totals
100%
10767
100%
1. WHAT PROBLEMS DO YOU FACE?
2. HOW CAN YOU TACKLE THEM?
Problems You Face
Problem - Stress
• Stress is the highest identified reason for absence in the
Directorate, it appears in the top 3 reasons for both long and short
term absence.
Suggestions
• Best practice to speak to the person as soon as they are absent
with stress as you may be able to assist, both if its related to work
and if it is personal.
• Send the individual a stress pack.
• BDMA Counselling Service.
• Take preventative action – Job Analysis, Workload…etc.
Problems You Face
Problem – Short Term Absences
• There were 1819 instances of short term absence, (under 4
weeks) compared to 51 instances of long term absence.
Suggestions
• Check that return to work interviews are taking place
• Is the Attendance Management Policy being applied?
• Are you utilising the Manager’s Guidelines?
• Refer staff to Occupational Health.
Problems You Face
Problem - Pending Reason
• 4th highest reason for absence for the Directorate – 9.5%, with 2nd
highest reason for long term – 16.2%
• This means that we do not know what causes a substantial
amount of the absence in the Directorate and therefore you do not
know where to focus your efforts.
Suggestions
• Investigate how absence is recorded and by whom to identify why
actual reasons are not being entered onto SAP.
Problems You Face
Problem – Infections
• Customer Services account for 31% of staff in the Directorate but
account for 37.09% of infections within the Directorate.
Suggestions
• Further information on who these people are by job or location to
establish if the nature of their role or where they work may be a
reason for the increased infections.
• If an individual is having persistent problems with infection refer
them to Occupational Health.
Problems You Face
Problem – Muscular-skeletal
• Law & Admin account for 19% of staff, but 28.2% of muscularskeletal absence
Suggestions
• Further information on who these people are by job or location to
establish if the nature of their role or where they work may be a
reason.
• If an individual is having persistent muscular-skeletal problems,
refer them to Occupational Health.
Good Practice
In areas where we have seen an increase in attendance, the main
reason appears to be management intervention, and a clear
understanding of roles and responsibilities.
Consider the following:
• Are your managers doing return to work interviews for every
member of staff after every period of absence?
• Are your managers aware of the revised trigger points and
amendments to the Attendance Management Policy?
• Are immediate referrals being made to OHU for cases of stress,
anxiety, depression, back pain or musculo-skeletal pain?
Good Practice
• Are your HR teams being consulted for advice with absence
cases?
• Are managers consistently applying the AMP with regards to
stages?
• Are managers aware of their absence hotspots?
• Do you know the main reasons for absences in your areas?
• Where you have answered yes, how do you know you are doing
all of these things?
Occupational Health Unit Services
Preventative Measures:
• The OHU has been more responsive, it has a collective contract
with AGMA to improve OHP resources and therefore employees
are being seen quicker.
• Action has taken place to prioritise absentees, for example stress
cases are being seen quicker using interventions such as
Consultant Clinical Psychologists and Cognitive Behavioural
Therapy (CBT).
• There has also been an extension to clinics for staff
stress counselling (1 day per week extra), 900
sessions per year all of which are full.
Occupational Health Unit Services
Preventative Measures:
• Information Document Management and electronic appointments
have speeded up the consultation process with Managers,
improved access to the service and they also help to provide
instant reports.
• A new option of case conferences has been introduced for
problematic cases.
Online Sickness Absence Recording
• The sickness absence information at Salford City Council is held
on a software system called SAP.
• For obvious reasons it is important that the information held on
this system is accurate and imputed in a timely manner.
• After careful consideration it was agreed that the way forward
would be to transform the recording of sickness absence through
technology by facilitating the entry of sickness absence
information directly onto the SAP system at source.
• All absence will be recorded for onto SAP using this online
absence recording system before the end of 2006.
Online Sickness Absence Recording
Online Sickness Absence Recording
Online Sickness Absence Recording
Online Sickness Absence Recording
Other Useful Information
• Absence Calculation
Absence is based on a calculation of 5 working days for all staff.
Once work schedules have been entered into the system this will
be altered to reflect actual working days.
• Medical Certificates
These must no longer be sent to Payroll. Instead they must be
retained by the Directorate.
Original Medical Certificates must be kept for a period of minimum
of 3 years from the end of the tax year that they relate to for
Statutory Sickness Payment (SSP) purposes.
What next?
Consider:
• What your absence target will be for next year (should be in your
balance score card).
• What action you need to take to help improve attendance levels in
your area and within the Directorate.
• How you are going to prepare for using the Online Absence
Recording Form.
What next?
Consider:
• Is there any information that you would like to be provided
that you feel would assist you in managing attendance?
If so:
What information that you are not receiving would you like to
receive?
(Include details of periods the report should cover and when
these reports would be received).
-
How would this benefit your management of attendance?
The end
• Contact Details
Requests for reports should be sent to the HRSI mailbox at
hrsi@salford.gov.uk.
This is maintained by:
Kathy Evans, Principal HR Advisor x 3304
Sarah Taylor, Senior HR Advisor
x 3169
Rob Bulman, Management Information Officer x 3159