Attendance Awareness and Management

1. Attendance Awareness and Management Youth Justice Ontario September 21, 2016 Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

2. Agenda • Introduction to attendance management • Introduction to absenteeism • Culpable absenteeism • Case Studies • Non-culpable absenteeism • Absence control • “Last chance” agreements … Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

3. Introductions/Objectives • What is your experience with attendance management? • My experience with attendance management • What do you hope to get out of this session? Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

4. Application of Program • Primary focus is unionized employees • General principles apply to non-union employees • But, specific factors are important • Consultation is crucial Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

5. Attendance management can be difficult and uncomfortable for all involved. So … Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

6. Why do attendance management? Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

7. The Employment Contract • Inherent in the employment relationship • “You come to work and do a good job and I’ll compensate you” • Every time an employee is not at work, it is an exception to the contract except where it’s part of the compensation • Sick time is necessary to the employee • Sick time can even be good for the employer • BUT … Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

8. Sick time is not an absolute right • It’s the exception not the rule • Absenteeism is: • Disruptive • Expensive Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

9. Absenteeism is Disruptive • Lost productivity • Service may suffer • Effect on co-workers • Extra workload • Need to support new or replacement staff • Need to train new or replacement workers • Staff morale Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

10. Absenteeism is Expensive • Financial costs • replacement costs (regular time/overtime) • cost of weekly indemnity plan • premium costs may rise for insured plans • lost productivity • Administrative costs • staff time to secure replacement employees or to re-assign the remaining employees • staff time to maintain attendance records and control absenteeism Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

11. Definition of Absenteeism • The failure of an employee to report for work as scheduled. • Absences due to paid holidays, vacations, approved leaves of absence, or other leaves of absence provided for in the collective agreement are not normally included. Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Scott MacInnes

12. Causes of Absenteeism • Serious accidents and illness • Minor accidents and illness • Low morale • Poor working conditions • Boredom on the job • Lack of job satisfaction • Inadequate leadership and poor supervision • Stress • Workload issues Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

13. Causes of Absenteeism • The existence of income protection plans • Personal problems • Financial • Marital • Substance abuse • Child care • Transportation problems • Poor physical fitness/nutrition Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

14. Absenteeism Trends • The higher the rate of pay and the greater the length of service of the employee, the fewer the absences • As an organization grows, there is a tendency toward higher rates of absenteeism • Women are absent more frequently than men • Single employees are absent more frequently than married employees Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

15. Absenteeism Trends • Younger employees are absent more frequently than older employees but … • Older employees are absent for longer periods of time • Unionized organizations have higher absenteeism rates than non-union organizations Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

16. Types of Absenteeism Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

17. Culpable • Difficult area to deal with • Consider non-culpable route first • Discipline is often the appropriate response Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

18. Culpable • Arrive late/leave early • Demonstrate operational impact • Clear rules, consistently enforced • Is docking pay enough? • Consider how much control employee had • Failure to notify • Must notify at earliest reasonable opportunity • Provide reason if requested • Clear rules, consistently enforced Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

19. Culpable • AWOL • Very serious • Insubordination? • Attempt to contact • Keep notes of attempts and outcome • Keep notes with respect to impact/costs • Standard of arbitral review • Consider all of the circumstances • Leave policies • Clear • Consistently applied Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

20. Culpable • Abuse of leave • Most serious – fraud/breach of trust • Two common types • Sick leave when not sick • Use of a leave for other than its intended purpose • Careful investigation • Reasonable suspicion Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

21. Case Studies Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

22. Case Study #1 Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Frank leaves work in a rush at the end of the day on Tuesday, August 24 because, he tells everyone, he has to drive his daughter to Peterborough and get her settled in for her second year of university at Trent. He calls in sick on Wednesday, August 25. He comes to work Thursday and his supervisor asks him if everything went okay taking his daughter to school.

23. Case Study #1 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Frank explains to the supervisor that as they were settling his daughter in, she suffered a gall bladder attack and they took her to the emergency department at Peterborough Hospital. She was eventually released and the family decided to bring her back home for the time being. They arrived home at 1:30 a.m. tired and upset and, thus, he had been unable to come to work on Wednesday. As Frank’s supervisor, what, if any response would you make to this?

24. Case Study #1 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Frank calls in sick Friday morning explaining that his daughter had been taken to the hospital by ambulance during the night and had undergone emergency gall bladder surgery and he was now too “stressed” to come to work. How would you react to this?

25. Case Study #2 Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Angeline is a casual secretary who is used during busy periods and to replace the regular secretaries when they are absent. The last two weeks of April are the busiest time of year in her department as the year end financial submissions, the annual activity reports and the functional plan for the upcoming year are all due to be submitted to the funding agency before May1. She always works during this period to meet the high volume of work.

26. Case Study #2 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates This year Angeline has asked for the last two weeks of April as vacation. As her supervisor, you tell her that you cannot approve the vacation due to the busy period. She says, “You can’t refuse me. You’re just another management toady trying to tell me what to do.” How would you respond?

27. Case Study #2 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates She says, “I have made plans to move my mother one week and I have airplane tickets for the second week that I can’t cancel. I am going to take vacation and you can’t stop me. You can fire me or I can quit.” How would you respond?

28. Case Study #2 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates You arrive at work Monday morning of the second last week of April already stressed by the work you have done to prepare to work on the submissions. Angeline does not arrive for work. There is no answer at her home when you call. How would you respond?

29. Case Study #3 Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Maria works straight evening shifts. She goes off sick and has been off for several months. You are her supervisor. The manager of your organization returns from a meeting and says, “You won’t believe what I saw on the way to my meeting. Maria, dressed in a Canada Post uniform, was delivering mail on Windsor Drive.” What, if any, action would you take?

30. Case Study #3 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Maria explains that she needs two incomes because her job with you doesn’t pay enough and she has large debts to pay off. She tells you that things are going to improve because she has met a man and will be moving in with him. He has a well-paying job and she will then be able to quit her letter carrier job. What, if any, response would you make?

31. Case Study #3 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Maria explains that the stress of balancing two jobs had been too much for her and, since the letter carrier job was low stress, she had called in sick for her job with you to ensure that she still had two incomes. What, if any, response would you make?

32. Case Study #3 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates Maria returns to work and, after four months without incident she books off sick again, saying she doesn’t know when she can return and that she will provide a doctor’s note. You wisely ask her to deliver the note to you directly. When she does, you ask for more information and she explains that she has never quit the other job because her boyfriend had been abusing her and stealing money from her, so she had been forced to move out. The stress of the two jobs had again been too much for her. What, if any, response would you make?

33. Case Study #3 (cont’d) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates How would you dela with this?

34. Non-culpable • Also called “innocent absenteeism” • Disciplinary response clearly inappropriate • Balancing of employee’s and employer’s competing interests • Discharge may still result • Non-punitive Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

35. But … • What does “extremely excessive”mean? • When does employer have right of termination? • What steps must be taken before the measure of last resort is taken? Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

36. Considerations Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

37. Attendance Record • Level of absenteeism • More than “above average” • Double? • Triple? • Pattern of absences • Intermittent and infrequent absences vs. • One or more long absences Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

38. Prognosis for Future Attendance • Onus is on employee with poor attendance record to show positive prognosis • Consider • Independent medical • Previous failed attempts at • Rehab • Modified work • Information is the key • Ask employee to supply all relevant info Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

39. Counselling • Has employee been treated fairly? • Bring to employee’s attention • Ensure employee knows consequences of failure to correct • Give employee reasonable opportunity to improve • Final counselling must be very clear • Document everything Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

40. Benefit Status • Some LTD plans make continuing employment a condition of receiving benefits • Arbitrators do not favour discharge if employee is on LTD & will lose entitlement Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

41. Human Rights Considerations • “Handicap” • Can employee’s disability be accommodated? • Has employer made reasonable attempts to accommodate employee’s condition? • Has the employee been adequately counselled regarding available assistance? • Discharge may still be appropriate Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

42. Human Rights Considerations (Cont’d.) Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates • Burgeoning area: • What absenteeism can be counted? • Disability vs. casual illness • Collective agreement provisions which exclude certain types of absenteeism • Difficulty with the threshold/denominator

43. WSIA considerations • Employer’s obligation to re-employ • May preclude termination Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

44. Absence Control Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

45. Roles of Key Players • Employees: To be at work on time every day • Supervisors: Day-to-day management of the system • OH&S: To provide advice and to do some of the communicating • HR Consultant: Overall guidance and advice on specific issues Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

46. A Systems Approach • Monitoring • Information gathering • Communication • Incentives • Standards • Support from collective bargaining approach Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

47. Monitoring • Quarterly reports • Quarterly stats • 12 month stats • Correct coding of time • Ask for reasons for absence Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

48. Employer’s Right to Information • Employees have a duty to provide information substantiating absences • Employers generally have a right to inquire as to the reasons for absences • Employers may take reasonable steps to investigate/disprove non-medical reasons • The employer’s right to medical substantiation will depend on CA Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

49. Employer’s Right to Information • A medical certificate is just one piece of information to be assessed by employer • Duty to accommodate expands employee’s duty to provide info and employer’s right to inquire • Consent to release and disclose medical information is necessary • Confidentiality of medical info should be preserved to the extent reasonably possible Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates

50. Communication • Policy dissemination • Interviews • Correspondence Scott MacInnes, S.D. MacInnes & Associates