No referrals were made at the time of the publication of the agenda.

The Director of Human Resources submitted a report (Document “AO”) which provided an update with regards to managing attendance Authority wide as requested in the Committee resolution of 3 February 2016.

The report illustrated an authority wide overview with departmental actions outlined.

The Director gave an overview of sickness absence, stating that overall there had been a decrease in sickness absence, although the final figures for 2016/2017 were not complete.  Services where absence showed an upward trajectory, managers were taking corrective action.  The primary reasons for sickness absence remained  muscular/skeletal and mental health.

During the discussion a Member ascertained what the financial cost was to the Authority as a result of sickness absence.  In response the Director confirmed that some initial calculations had been done with HR Plus and they could be circulated to Members.

In relation to a question regarding mental health as  a reason for sickness absence, it was explained that although mental health was categorised in several ways, incidence of work related stress was decreasing.

In response to a question regarding work being done to address mental health, the Director confirmed that a lot of work had been done to address the stigma around mental health, and to this end a number of courses had been delivered with our health colleague partners  on tackling stress.  In addition it was proposed to roll out a mental health e-learning course as well as support being offered by health and wellbeing services.

A Member ascertained whether there had been a genuine decrease in work related stress or was it related to managers having more frank discussions with staff on the issue.  In response it was stated that a number of initiatives had improved the way in which mental health is recorded with a concerted effort to reduce the stigma surrounding it.

In terms of understanding the root causes, many incidents around mental health stemmed from issues outside of work.

In response to a question on how the sickness absence figures compared with the private sector, it was pointed out that although the levels were lower in the private sector, when compared to organisations of 5,0000 staff or more, the levels were similar.

In addition it was stressed that the Council now had an ageing workforce and as a result there were more muscular/skeletal related illness that were being reported. In addition HR plus were actively working with managers to monitor sickness absence and flag up any issues once a trigger point is reached.

In terms of the support provided to people suffering from age related sickness, it was pointed out that front line workers were particularly prone and HR Plus were targeting resources effectively and providing appropriate advice to managers.

A Member stated that the report did not fully identify the reasons behind some of the sickness absence or give a clear analysis of the figures contained in the report.

In relation to a question on whether the reductions in the Council budget had had a correlating impact on the levels of sickness absence, the Director confirmed that the figures had remained static over the years and therefore it was difficult to draw any correlation to the budget reductions.

A Member stated that in order to get a better understanding of sickness absence and the reasons behind it, that a deeper analysis of the services which had a high level of sickness absence would be more useful.

Resolved –

(1)       That this Committee requests that a further report be presented in        3 months, which focuses on service areas where sickness levels      are significantly high such as:

·         Children’s Services

·         Health and Wellbeing

·         Environment and Sport

(2)       That all Departments continue to prioritise sickness absence and         maintain all efforts to further improve performance. 

ACTION: All Strategic Directors