Dismissal due to excessive ill health absenteeism
- Authors: Van der Walt, Natasha
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Employees, Dismissal of -- South Africa , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa , Employees -- Health and hygiene
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:10201 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1286 , Employees, Dismissal of -- South Africa , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa , Employees -- Health and hygiene
- Description: In a globally competitive market place companies strive to become as efficient as possible. Absenteeism is a worldwide problem as it impacts on company efficiency and cost effectiveness. A large portion of absenteeism can be attributed to ill health absences. Companies have prioritized the need to find ways of managing and reducing absenteeism. In South Africa such processes have to occur within the confines of a constitutional right to fair labour practices and other prescriptive labour legislation. The issue is somewhat complicated by the fact that employees have a right to paid time off due to illness. It is thus clear that not all ill health absenteeism can be deemed problematic. A balancing act needs to occur between the operational needs of the employer and the rights of employees. Ill health absenteeism becomes problematic once a threshold is reached at which point it becomes intolerable for the employer, thus deemed excessive. Excessive ill health absenteeism is not a difficult concept to understand, however it is not specifically defined. A universal concept of when absence is deemed to have reached the threshold of excessiveness does not exist and varies from one employer to the next. Excessive ill health absence is a multi-facetted concept (as a result of the various types of ill health absence) and thus a universal process cannot be adopted to deal with all types of excessive ill health absenteeism. In an attempt to deal with the different types of ill health absenteeism it is pertinent to categorize the issues. The author suggests various ways of dealing with ill health absenteeism, depending on the facts of each case. A misconduct process should only be applicable in instances where it can be proved that sick leave is used inappropriately or the reason for absence is unknown. Although case law suggests the prevalence of dealing with ill health absence as misconduct, especially in the case of persistent short term absence, these cases rarely prove that abuse is taking place. Suspicions regarding abuse without proper evidence to support such claims will not satisfy the substantive fairness requirements. In the event that illness is of a medium to long term nature, an ill health incapacity process may be the most appropriate process to apply, as in such instances a clearly distinguishable illness exists, which makes accommodation less problematic. Such a process is less suited to persistent short term absence as this can be the result of many illnesses or injuries. In the case of persistent short term absence, the individual may be fully capable of performing their duties upon returning to work, however their frequent absence causes unreliability and inefficiency. It is clear in this instance that accommodation cannot take place due to the unpredictable nature of the absences. The concern with persistent short term absence is less with the illness or illnesses displayed and more with the absences itself. The author suggests that it may be appropriate to deal with such absences on the basis of incapacity due to poor work performance. This assertion is based on the fact that the concern is with frequent short term absence that causes the employee to be unreliable; however the illnesses are not of such a nature that it can warrant accommodation. If it is accepted that the employee is not malingering or if the malingering cannot be proved the employee has failed to meet a performance standard (attendance standard). It is suggested that as part of any incapacity investigation consideration should be given to whether the illness or injury can be deemed a disability. This is necessary as disabled individuals are afforded special protection and treatment. A dismissal of an incapacitated individual that is actually deemed “disabled” could be held to be automatically unfair and therefore it is pertinent that this is established at the outset.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Van der Walt, Natasha
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Employees, Dismissal of -- South Africa , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa , Employees -- Health and hygiene
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:10201 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1286 , Employees, Dismissal of -- South Africa , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa , Employees -- Health and hygiene
- Description: In a globally competitive market place companies strive to become as efficient as possible. Absenteeism is a worldwide problem as it impacts on company efficiency and cost effectiveness. A large portion of absenteeism can be attributed to ill health absences. Companies have prioritized the need to find ways of managing and reducing absenteeism. In South Africa such processes have to occur within the confines of a constitutional right to fair labour practices and other prescriptive labour legislation. The issue is somewhat complicated by the fact that employees have a right to paid time off due to illness. It is thus clear that not all ill health absenteeism can be deemed problematic. A balancing act needs to occur between the operational needs of the employer and the rights of employees. Ill health absenteeism becomes problematic once a threshold is reached at which point it becomes intolerable for the employer, thus deemed excessive. Excessive ill health absenteeism is not a difficult concept to understand, however it is not specifically defined. A universal concept of when absence is deemed to have reached the threshold of excessiveness does not exist and varies from one employer to the next. Excessive ill health absence is a multi-facetted concept (as a result of the various types of ill health absence) and thus a universal process cannot be adopted to deal with all types of excessive ill health absenteeism. In an attempt to deal with the different types of ill health absenteeism it is pertinent to categorize the issues. The author suggests various ways of dealing with ill health absenteeism, depending on the facts of each case. A misconduct process should only be applicable in instances where it can be proved that sick leave is used inappropriately or the reason for absence is unknown. Although case law suggests the prevalence of dealing with ill health absence as misconduct, especially in the case of persistent short term absence, these cases rarely prove that abuse is taking place. Suspicions regarding abuse without proper evidence to support such claims will not satisfy the substantive fairness requirements. In the event that illness is of a medium to long term nature, an ill health incapacity process may be the most appropriate process to apply, as in such instances a clearly distinguishable illness exists, which makes accommodation less problematic. Such a process is less suited to persistent short term absence as this can be the result of many illnesses or injuries. In the case of persistent short term absence, the individual may be fully capable of performing their duties upon returning to work, however their frequent absence causes unreliability and inefficiency. It is clear in this instance that accommodation cannot take place due to the unpredictable nature of the absences. The concern with persistent short term absence is less with the illness or illnesses displayed and more with the absences itself. The author suggests that it may be appropriate to deal with such absences on the basis of incapacity due to poor work performance. This assertion is based on the fact that the concern is with frequent short term absence that causes the employee to be unreliable; however the illnesses are not of such a nature that it can warrant accommodation. If it is accepted that the employee is not malingering or if the malingering cannot be proved the employee has failed to meet a performance standard (attendance standard). It is suggested that as part of any incapacity investigation consideration should be given to whether the illness or injury can be deemed a disability. This is necessary as disabled individuals are afforded special protection and treatment. A dismissal of an incapacitated individual that is actually deemed “disabled” could be held to be automatically unfair and therefore it is pertinent that this is established at the outset.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
Absenteeism management at Willard Batteries
- Authors: Paul, Gary William
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Absenteeism (Labor) -- Management , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: vital:9383 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/896 , Absenteeism (Labor) -- Management , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa
- Description: The main research problem in this study centred around the assessment of the impact of an absenteeism monitoring and management system at Willard Batteries. The main research problem had five sub-problems which were addressed through the following actions: A literature study was conducted to identify the causes and impact of absenteeism in the workplace. The researcher also conducted interviews with the Human Resources Manager, line managers and employees at Willard Batteries to obtain their views of the absenteeism management strategies utilised, as well as the effects of absenteeism in their organisation. The insights gained from these interviews were incorporated into the questionnaire. The absenteeism figures of the organisation for the period 2005 to 2008 were analysed and compared against the internationally accepted absenteeism norm of three percent. An absence rate above three percent is considered as unacceptable and would imply that the current absenteeism management system is not effective. The theoretical study also entailed the reviewing of the legal framework within which absenteeism needs to be managed, as well as the literature that deals with strategies for the effective management of absenteeism. These strategies relate to the recording, calculation, analysis, benchmarking and practical management of absenteeism in the workplace. A survey questionnaire was developed to determine the perceptions of managers, supervisors and employees in relation to the impact of absenteeism on the company as well as the extent to which managers and supervisors were utilising selected absenteeism monitoring and management strategies within the company. The results from the empirical study revealed that management and supervisors were more aware of the impact of absenteeism on the organisation than their employees. It can therefore be concluded that employees perceived their absence from work to have little impact on aspects such as employee morale, cost, production and the customer. This could possibly be due to ineffective communication in terms of the cost and other consequences of absenteeism in the organisation. Employees also felt that managers were effective in taking the necessary disciplinary action with regards to absenteeism-related transgressions, but that they were not diligent in the recording and communication of absence information, as well as comparing absenteeism information inter-departmentally. Absenteeism has proven to be globally pervasive, expensive and extremely disruptive to organisations. Managers and supervisors who employ the various absence monitoring and management strategies, could be more effective in improving employee attendance. Their efforts could be further enhanced if employees are made aware of the negative impact that their absence has on the morale of their fellow employees, the cost to the company, the customer, as well as the achievement of production targets and the quality of outputs.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Paul, Gary William
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Absenteeism (Labor) -- Management , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: vital:9383 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/896 , Absenteeism (Labor) -- Management , Absenteeism (Labor) -- South Africa
- Description: The main research problem in this study centred around the assessment of the impact of an absenteeism monitoring and management system at Willard Batteries. The main research problem had five sub-problems which were addressed through the following actions: A literature study was conducted to identify the causes and impact of absenteeism in the workplace. The researcher also conducted interviews with the Human Resources Manager, line managers and employees at Willard Batteries to obtain their views of the absenteeism management strategies utilised, as well as the effects of absenteeism in their organisation. The insights gained from these interviews were incorporated into the questionnaire. The absenteeism figures of the organisation for the period 2005 to 2008 were analysed and compared against the internationally accepted absenteeism norm of three percent. An absence rate above three percent is considered as unacceptable and would imply that the current absenteeism management system is not effective. The theoretical study also entailed the reviewing of the legal framework within which absenteeism needs to be managed, as well as the literature that deals with strategies for the effective management of absenteeism. These strategies relate to the recording, calculation, analysis, benchmarking and practical management of absenteeism in the workplace. A survey questionnaire was developed to determine the perceptions of managers, supervisors and employees in relation to the impact of absenteeism on the company as well as the extent to which managers and supervisors were utilising selected absenteeism monitoring and management strategies within the company. The results from the empirical study revealed that management and supervisors were more aware of the impact of absenteeism on the organisation than their employees. It can therefore be concluded that employees perceived their absence from work to have little impact on aspects such as employee morale, cost, production and the customer. This could possibly be due to ineffective communication in terms of the cost and other consequences of absenteeism in the organisation. Employees also felt that managers were effective in taking the necessary disciplinary action with regards to absenteeism-related transgressions, but that they were not diligent in the recording and communication of absence information, as well as comparing absenteeism information inter-departmentally. Absenteeism has proven to be globally pervasive, expensive and extremely disruptive to organisations. Managers and supervisors who employ the various absence monitoring and management strategies, could be more effective in improving employee attendance. Their efforts could be further enhanced if employees are made aware of the negative impact that their absence has on the morale of their fellow employees, the cost to the company, the customer, as well as the achievement of production targets and the quality of outputs.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
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