We hope this helps you dealing with some of your absence and line management problems!

• Ensure that line managers understand the role and function of hr of the absence management process. too many times they think they are all on their own.
• Publicize the other assistance that can be called upon such as retraining, risk assessment (for those injured at work), occupational health involvement , assist them in cordinating and implementing these actions.
• Regularly review their absence statistics and employees who are and have been off. always agree a set of next steps and a timescale.
• If  line management have a regular operational type meeting see if HR can attend for a short period once a week to discuss absence management.
• Ensure that each manager has easy access to absence documentation such as employee attendance records and regularly receives statistics relating to the organization as a whole and the department if necessary.
• Make absence a permanent and regular part of employee communication.
• If managers (and they should) deal with employees reporting sick ensure that they are well versed in what they can and can`t say. for instance in a manufacturing environment it may not be possible to go into the necessary depth at 6am in the morning to take a call but there should be no reason why the manager cannot arrange to phone that employee back later.
• Link absence management processes to what happens in the workplace. if there are issues with ergonomics, health and safety, accidents ensure that these are dealt with.
• Don`t leave it all to the line manager, sometimes it is appropriate to hurry them up arrange meetings but as long as you don`t ever do it all you`ll be seen as an asset to them.
• Continually link absence management to business processes such as appraisals, induction and recruitment that way you`ll always keep it high up the agenda.