Absence; HR Issue?

1. Definition of absence and a national overview

Definition

According to ACAS (2001) absence can be categorised as follows:

 Unauthorised absence (including lateness)
 Certificated sick leave
 Uncertificated sick leave

Most types of authorised absence including holidays, jury service etc can be anticipated and organised in advance in response to the needs of the organisation and the worker.

Cascio (2000) defines absence as “any failure to report for or remain at work as scheduled, regardless of the reason.” It is a voluntary absence that excludes annual leave, statutory holidays, strikes and industrial action, statutory time off, special leave and personal domestic leave. Cascio (2000) raises an interesting and fundamental idea. The concept of absenteeism is rendered meaningless in ‘knowledge environments’, whereby individuals are measured not by tasks they perform but the end results achieved. Results achieved by the ‘knowledge worke...