New Attendance Procedure Q&As

[fishtank]

Attendance Procedure Q&As

1. When will the new agreement come in?
It is currently the subject of a branch ballot which closes on 18th January 2013. If it is accepted, CWU and Royal Mail have agreed to allow sufficient time for the agreement to be jointly explained to managers and representatives at all levels in the business prior to introduction, which is expected to take place in April 2013.

2. What is the status of the guides circulated with the agreement and of existing national
and local guidance to managers?
The national guides provide an overview of how the agreement and policy should apply
across the business in a consistent way and cannot be varied locally. Any future changes
will be the subject of a discussion between CWU, Unite and Royal Mail with the aim of
achieving consensus.

3. Is there a change to attendance standards?
The attendance standards are the same as the current Royal Mail and Parcelforce
Worldwide agreement. However, the review period at review period 1 and 2 becomes a
fixed 6 months. This replaces the current rolling period. The new approach is focussed
on supporting employees in meeting the standards.

4. Is there a change to how length of absence is calculated (i.e. the inclusion of days
when no attendance is due)?
No. As at present calendar days are counted so, for example where an attendance was
due on Saturday and Monday but not Sunday this would be treated as one absence of
three days.

5. What is the sick pay policy? Is it part of the agreement?
The sick policy remains unchanged and is not part of this agreement. We have clarified
how some elements of the approach should work prior to an employees pay being
stopped including provision of written notice in advance. Details of this can be found
within the policy and guides.

6. Will managers still automatically send a special delivery letter on the first day of
absence?
No. Employees have a responsibility to notify their managers as soon as possible before
the beginning of their shift or usual work start time in accordance with the local
arrangements for their office or work location. The employee should advise the
manager of the reason for their absence, the likely duration and anticipated return date.
Where the employee’s absence is going to be longer than a few days then the manager and employee should agree how they will maintain contact during the period of
absence. This would include the level of contact, how often and the method by which
contact will take place, for example this could be by email or telephone conversation.
Where the absence is not likely to last more than a few days further contact should not
normally be necessary. Where the absence is longer term it is recommended that
contact should be made on at least a weekly basis and the manager/employee agree a
contact plan that should be maintained throughout the period of absence. If the
employee does not make contact with the manager then the manager will make
reasonable efforts to try to contact the employee.

7. Can an employee take a rep to an informal discussion?
No. The employee will have sufficient time to consult with their union representative
but this is an informal discussion which either the manager or the employee can
request. The employee is entitled to be represented at any formal meeting.

8. Will employees have access to records for informal discussions?
Yes, within the attendance policy guidelines under the heading “Informal Review
Discussions” it states: “When advising an employee of an informal review discussion the
manager will explain its purpose and give the employee sufficient time to prepare for it,
including the opportunity for the employee to consult with their union representative.
The manager will provide a copy of the employee’s attendance record at that meeting.”

9. Will employees have access to records of informal discussions kept by managers?
Yes. Employees may request access at any time and copies will be provided before any
meeting under the formal procedure.

10. How do we know managers will not just ignore mitigation?
There is a very clear requirement, repeated throughout the agreement and the guides,
for managers to consider all aspects of the attendance record: “Each case should be
treated on its merits and any mitigating factors the employee has raised in relation to
their attendance record must be taken into account.”However, just as important as the
words, the agreed intention is for CWU and Royal Mail to roll out the agreement jointly,
using one set of explanatory material. The application of the agreement will then be
jointly monitored and reviewed at local, regional and national level to ensure that it is
being applied consistently in accordance with its terms and spirit.

11. The agreement says that employees can be “accompanied” by a union rep at formal meetings – does that take away the reps ability to speak on behalf of the employee?
There is no change to the role of the rep. The right to be accompanied is a legal
entitlement as well as a long standing part of the agreements between CWU and Royal
Mail. It is defined as the right to make representations on behalf the employee – so, as at present the employee can put a case on behalf of the employee. Again, as at present,
the employee would be expected to answer directly any questions put to them.


If there are any questions regarding this new procedure then please email attendanceprocedure@cwu.org and we will respond as quickly as possible.

[POSTMAN]

Cheers Fish.

7? Says no then yes.

[fishtank]

7? Says no then yes.

Says no to informal discussion.
Says yes to formal meeting.

[POSTMAN]

7? Says no then yes.

Says no to informal discussion.
Says yes to formal meeting.

Oh ffs!

[billyboy123]

still no right of appeal against unjust stage 1 and 2 warnings. so as before we know stage 1 and 2 warnings will be issued whatever the reason for absence.

[Thixty]

we had a meeting in our office and we were told we must be in our homes at all times when off sick !? wtf if that about? house arrest is the new RM policy

[General Mannerheim]

Well I'm convinced now.

[Ahebban]

How can an informal meeting be 'informal' if notes are taken and filed? The only purpose for notes is that they can be raised at any point in the future, not just at a formal meeting under the Attendance Procedure. Neither does it state that the meeting should be a 1-2-1 between 'manager' and 'employee' so there is a possibility of another manager being present to take 'notes'. The rep can say all the right things to an employee prior to them entering the devil's den, but once inside any amount of intimidation etc can be applied over which the Rep will have no control.

Whilst overall there is greater clarity to the Attendance Procedure I am not wholly convinced the overall package is a great improvement on what we already have.

[fishtank]

The informal reviews have so far drawn very little attention.

In the unlikely event that a member has issues with his/her attendance that they wish to discuss with a manager they can already do so.
One of the stated intentions of this agreement was to standardise the approach to the attendance agreement by managers but there are no guidelines on what should trigger an informal review,what should be discussed or what documentation will be signed for by the member and held on record.
To me that's a dangerous position because management will fill that void with their own interpretation.

Good managers may use the opportunity to see whether there are any underlying medical issues,average managers may use the opportunity simply to remind members of implications of the attendance procedure,poor managers may use it to bully staff into thinking their job is on the line by talking about unacceptable patterns and the burden on the business.

If the agreement is accepted as is,my advice to members given the lack of clarity over the informal absence review in the majority of cases would be to say nothing.

[krussel]

The fixed 6 month period is better than the rolling from last absence etc

Overall the agreement still sucks and makes you feel pretty worthless.

[flaminmoses]

we had a meeting in our office and we were told we must be in our homes at all times when off sick !? wtf if that about? house arrest is the new RM policy

if you are off and under dda that wont stand up.....


some illnesses are covered by "normal daily duties"

can only presume that any illness will fall under the same bracket.

because lets say if you lived alone or cared for someone........i certainly would hold rm liable if the person i was caring for died because i wasnt allowed to leave the house.

[fishtank]

The meaning behind remaining at your normal address is supposed to be that you continue to reside at your normal address,not that you cannot leave the house.
However i have heard managers try to put there own definition on it as the wording is (deliberately?) vague.