Absenteeism 0113_A01 Absenteeism - Fleet Street Publications

Absenteeism
Warning: You cannot merely dismiss your employee
because he is disabled or sick. Also, you may not
discriminate unfairly against him (Section 187 of the
LRA and Section 6 of the EEA).
You are entitled to consider terminating your
employee’s employment if:
• his disability is so severe that he is unable to work
for the foreseeable future, and
• you have exhausted every alternative to dismissal,
and
• you have consulted your employee fully on the
alternatives
You must, through consultation with him, establish the
seriousness and expected duration of the
illness/disability (i.e. whether the disability is of a
temporary or permanent nature).
In the process of the investigation, the employee should
be allowed the opportunity to state his case in response
and to be assisted by a trade union representative or a
fellow employee.
Whether the incapacity is of a temporary or permanent
nature, you should investigate all alternatives short of
dismissal.
In the event of a temporary disability, you should, for
example, consider the securing of a temporary
replacement for the period that the employee may be
absent.
If it is found that the incapacity is of a permanent nature,
you should establish whether the employee is able to
perform his work. If not, the following should be
established:
• the extent to which the employee is able to perform
his duties
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