1. Supporting your Team to Balance Work/Life and Wellbeing
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

2. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Learning Objectives
To understand your role and responsibilities in supporting your team members seek to balance their work/life commitments
To feel confident in dealing with a flexible working requests
To be able to robustly consider the business case/reasons to determine and justify your decision in relation to approving/rejecting a request
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

3. Overview of Policy Frameworks
Part 1
Overview of Policy Frameworks
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

4. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Policy Framework
Maternity
Secondments
Flexible Retirement
Paternity
Career Breaks
Adoption
Flexible Working
Shared Parental Leave
Special Leave
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

5. Entitlements – Family friendly policies
Policy
Maternity
Paternity
Adoption
Shared Parental
Leave
52 weeks
2 weeks to be taken within first 8 weeks
Occupational
Pay
(subject to qualifying service)
8 weeks - full
18 weeks -half
Remaining 26 weeks unpaid
Full pay
Statutory Maternity / Adoption Pay
Tip: Check policy and seek advice from HR Officer team on ext 6028
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

6. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Key line manager responsibilities
Maternity Policy;
Risk Assessment for pregnant employees
Referral to Occupational Health
Time off for antenatal appointments
Professional registration
All family friendly policies;
Written notification of entitlement to leave and pay to employee
Confirmation of arrangements for antenatal, pre-adoption appointments
Automatic right to return to work (after 52 weeks leave)
Ensure change forms are processed within payroll cut off deadlines to avoid overpayments
Agree frequency and method of communication during leave
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

7. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Any questions on Maternity, Paternity, Adoption or Shared Parental Leave Policies?
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

8. Summary of policy framework Employment (Career) Break
Other policies to support work life balance
Summary of policy framework
Employment (Career) Break
Flexible Working
Flexible retirement
Secondments
Eligibility
All employees can request
All = Right to request, but certain groups have statutory right
Linked to NHS Pension membership
Entitlement
Min 3 months, maximum of 5 years – request can be refused
No statutory entitlement - request can be refused
No entitlement – request can be refused
Other provisions
Unpaid
Statutory process/
timescales must be followed
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

9. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Flexible Retirement – options for Scheme Members
Step down
Staff can step down to a different role, for example, to reduce the level of responsibility while remaining in NHS employment.
Wind down
Staff can wind down to retirement by remaining in their current post but reduce the number of hours or days they work.
Retire and return
Members who have reached the minimum pension age can choose to retire, claim their pension benefits and then return to NHS employment.
Draw down
Members can take part of their pension benefits and continue in NHS employment.
Late retirement enhancement
Members can retire later than their normal pension age and have their pension benefits increased.
Early retirement reduction buy out (ERRBO)
Members or employers can pay additional contributions to buy out the reduction applied to the member's pension if they retire before their normal pension age.
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

10. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Key line manager responsibilities
All policies;
Consider all applications fairly and consistently.
To ensure you can provide justifiable business reasons in the event that an application is refused.
To seek advice and guidance from their line manager and/or Human Resources as needed.
In a timely manner notify payroll via a change form of the arrangements to ensure that there is no overpayments or underpayments
Confirm in writing
Career Break;
Professional registration – ensure the arrangements are documented in relation to professional registration
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

11. Any questions on the Policy Frameworks?
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

12. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Part 2
Dealing with requests
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

13. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Dealing with requests
Key messages;
Same principles apply when considering requests under flexible working policy, flexible retirement, Employment (Career) Break Policy and Secondments
Policy timescale and process to follow may differ – check policy!
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

14. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Dealing with Flexible Working Requests
Eligibility;
Be an employee
Have 26 weeks or more service
Not previously submitted request within past 12 months
Statutory Right;
Parental responsibility of a child aged 16 or under or a disabled child under 18 who receives Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
Are a Foster parent or partner of foster parent
Are a carer who cares for an adult who is a spouse, partner, civil partner or relative; or who although not related to you, lives at the same address as you
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

15. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Dealing with Flexible Working Requests
Step 1: Employee puts request in writing
Step 2: Line manager must arrange to meet with the employee within 28 days of request.
Step 3: The meeting
Step 4: Line manager must confirm in writing within 14 days of the meeting the outcome;
a) The agreed working arrangements or;
b) the business reasons why this can’t be accommodated
Step 5: Right to appeal in writing to next level of management
Step 6: Appeal meeting within 14 days of the appeal letter
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

16. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Scenario:
Employee employed 37.5
Admin role with reception duties
Works Monday – Friday 08:30 – 16:30
Flexible working request received based on;
3 days per week
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Hours requested 07:45 – 17:45
How do you deal with this request?
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

17. Justified business reasons
Able to recruit remaining hours ?
Additional costs incurred?
Justified business reasons
Min/Max working hours
Other staffing cover during day/week
Supervision/
Lone working
Work flow during day/week
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

18. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Justified business reasons continued..
Document your decision making process
What data do you need to help make an objective decision?
Outline the daily routine in your team – how would this be achieved with the new working pattern?
Seek a compromise
Seek check and challenge approval prior to confirming agreement to ensure you can recruit to remaining hours
Can you justify your decision? It is reasonable and based on fact?
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

19. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Part 3
Special Leave
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

20. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Principles of the policy framework
Some circumstances have a statutory entitlement to time off
Reasonable discretion
Upper limit does not become the automatic allowance in every case, nor should it ever be regarded as an employee’s right
Cover genuine, unforeseen circumstances
Unpaid in the first instance
Recorded on MAPS Health roster
If employee unhappy – escalate to managers manager
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

21. What’s covered? Time off for dependants (Carers leave)
Compassionate Leave
Job interviews
Exceptional domestic leave
Civil/Public duties
Jury Service
Emergency services leave
Reservists
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

22. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Quick Fire Round!
Your specialist subject is…..
Dealing with special leave request in your team!
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

23. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Shared learning opportunity
How do you manage special leave requests?
What works for you?
What do you struggle with?
How do you ensure consistency?
Do you have any examples that we can discuss as a group?
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

24. Other support resources
Part 4
Other support resources
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence

25. High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence
Employee Assistance Programme – it’s more than just counselling!
24 hours a day, 7 days a week
face to face counselling, legal, financial, childcare, eldercare, property, sports and money advice.
Username: IOW Password: employee 
Freephone:
Managing stress resources via Occupational health intranet pages
Health and Wellbeing zone
Exercise clases,
Training and Development;
High Performance Leaders and Managers – Managing Absence