There are a number of ways employers and work colleagues can help:
- Spend some time with your employee and listen to the plans they have made. We encourage you to be open-minded about the potential benefits of an early return to work. An earlier return can be beneficial to the employer:
- It can reduce costs by reducing the need for someone else to cover all the work
- Nurturing employees and making them feel valued increases staff retention and reduces recruitment costs
- An organisation’s treatment of its employees while off sick and returning to work can shape the way they and others regard the company. Employer support will create a positive culture and boost morale
- Returning to work in a phased way reduces the likelihood of employees not returning at all, thereby saving the need to recruit and train a new staff member
- Early engagement with your employee is important. The way they are treated while they are off work can impact on how they view the company, their colleagues and, ultimately, how successfully they return to work. Being supportive from the outset can reduce this impact. Early engagement also gives you plenty of time to plan and put in to action the plans you have made
- Research has found that the actions and attitudes of the line manager can be crucial to a person’s successful return to work. Line managers can take a number of steps to improve the return-to-work process, including:
- Keeping in contact with absent employees whilst they are off work in order to keep them updated on the events at work
- Meeting with absent employees to help them draw up a plan for their return to work after surgery. This should include information about their duties and hours when they return and how these will increase over time
- Being flexible with regards to duties and hours and adapting quickly if recovery turns out to be slower than expected
- Remaining positive, flexible, and understanding
- Utilising a phased or modified return to support early return to work
- Many of these steps are required as part of an organisation’s sickness absence and attendance policy and procedures