Sick Leave

Sick Leave



Applies to all: NLG team

Sick Leave

Introduction

Sick leave is provided in the event and of a team member’s illness, their spouse/partner or dependent being sick or injured and needing care.

Sick Leave Provisions

The Company’s sick leave policy provides team members with 8 days sick leave per year, after 3 months current continuous service.

Employees can accumulate unused sick leave from year to year up to a maximum of 15 days (a maximum entitlement of 20 days in any one 12 month period).

Additional to these 8 days paid sick leave, a team member’s manager may approve an additional 2 days paid sick leave per annum, should there be a genuine need for it.

The company also offers the opportunity for team members who are eligible, to apply to their manager for further paid and/or unpaid sick leave.  These provisions are for exceptional circumstances e.g. where a team member, spouse/recognised partner or dependent has a long term or serious illness and requires an extended time away from work to recover or to care for those who are dependent on them. Refer to section Longer Term Absences/ Exceptional Circumstances for more information.

Approvals for additional sick leave are on a case-by-case basis and are at the sole discretion of the Company.  Final approval, to support consistency of application, is by the Strategic General Manager - Noel Leeming and Torpedo7 Group.

Further information and examples regarding this provision are in the section headed – Longer Term Absences in exceptional circumstances.

Sick Leave Days

Sick leave for full time and key time (part time) employees is calculated in days not hours i.e. ¼ day; ½ day; ¾ day or full day, regardless of how many hours a team member works.

Sick Leave Pay Calculations

Statutory sick leave and manager discretionary sick leave (up to 2 days per annum) are calculated at ‘relevant daily pay’ or 'average daily pay' i.e. the amount of pay a team member would have been paid, had they worked on that day.

ACC top up payments are based on the last 4 weeks average earnings “normal weekly pay”.

Longer-term absences in exceptional circumstances, may be paid or unpaid.  If it is paid, depending on the length of absence required, it may be at ordinary rate of pay.

Unspecified Sick Leave

The Company recognises that a few team members on employment agreement IEA 04 NLG (1) and IEA 04 NLG SAL (1) and who were employed prior to 5 September 2005, will be on the Company’s unspecified sick leave provisions.

The company’s unspecified sick leave policy is: a team member's salary or relevant daily pay will continue if a team member needs to be absent as a result of genuine illness.

The intent of this policy is to enable team members to be supported in times of sickness or when they need to care for a spouse/partner or dependent where the current 5-day per annum entitlement does not meet a person’s needs.

Unspecified sick leave will continue to be managed in the appropriate way, where:
  • Concerns about frequency and/or authenticity will be discussed and appropriate action taken, including withdrawal of sick leave provisions, where required. (Refer section re Concern Regarding Sick Leave)
  • Longer-term absences for serious or long-term illness require the approval by the Strategic General Manager - NLG and T7 Group and are decided on a case by case basis. (Refer to section Long Term Absences-Exceptional circumstances).

Non-Continuous Service

Employees whose employment is not continuous, after 3 months, may be entitled to sick leave if during those 3 months they have worked for the Company for:
  •                 An average of at least 10 hours per week, including
  •                 At least one hour per week or 40 hours per month.

Team members on a series of fixed term agreements, or team members sometimes described as “casual”, would become entitled to sick leave if they met this test.


Notifying  Manager of Absence

To assist the smooth running of the business, all reasonable effort must be made to personally notify the manager verbally of the team member's need to take sick leave either before that day or before the normal start time on any day of absence.  Sending text messages is not considered to be verbal notification.

Failure to do so without reasonable cause is considered misconduct and may result in disciplinary action being invoked.

In cases of absences exceeding one (1) day, team members must notify their manager verbally on a daily basis for every scheduled workday missed, except where a medical certificate has been submitted in advance of the absence.

Following return to work from sick leave, a Leave Form must be submitted via MyPay.

ACC payments

ACC does not pay for the first week of absence for a work related or non work-related injury.  ACC only pay the 80% of a team member’s salary after the first week.

Work Related Injuries

If a team member is off work due to a work-related injury the Company will top up the 80% statutory requirement and pay the equivalent 100% of an team member's normal weekly pay.

If a team member is off work for more than one week due to a work related injury then the company will top up the 80% payment from ACC. This top up payment will be reviewed at 4 weeks.

These payments will not be deducted from a team member's sick leave balance and  will be paid at the equivalent of their normal weekly pay.

An incident form must be filled in at the time of the incident/accident. An employee must see a medical Doctor as soon as practicable, to be assessed and be provided a medical certificate.  All ACC forms must be filled in a timely manner.

If it is unclear to the Company whether the injury is related to work or not the Company will review the top up payment arrangements.

Non Work Related Injuries

If a team member has a non-work related accident then the first week can be paid from sick leave entitlement.

If a team member is on accident compensation for more than one (1) week, they can make a application that the difference between payments received from ACC and the team member’s normal salary or ordinary pay be paid from their statutory sick leave entitlement.

Refer also to the section on medical certificates below.

Sickness Whilst on Annual Leave

If a team member becomes sick on holiday they are able to apply to have their annual leave converted to sick leave.  The team member will need to complete a leave form and provide a medical certificate.  Leave will be converted to sick leave provided there is statutory sick leave entitlement available.

Sickness on a Public Holiday

Where a team member would normally work on a public holiday but cannot work due to sickness, the payment for the day is as if they had a paid un-worked public holiday. Therefore:
  •          The team member would not be entitled to the minimum time and a half payment for working on a public holiday or to an alternative holiday
  •          They would be paid at their relevant daily pay rate
  •          No sick leave would be deducted.


Alternative Payment options

As per the Holidays Act our policy also allows for team members to request to use annual leave entitlements and alternative days, if necessary, where they have annual leave available, and where their sick leave entitlement has been used and other options are not available.

Medical Certificates/Health Information

Generally medical certificates are not required, except:

  • If a team member is absent from work for three (3) consecutive calendar days, whether or not the days are working days.  I.e. three (3) calendar days are not necessarily interrupted by a scheduled break, for example a team member taking a day's sick leave on a Friday, then a two-day scheduled weekend break, can be asked to provide proof of the illness or injury if they take another day's sick leave on the Monday, even if that day is only the second day of sick leave.
  • A manager may request a medical certificate for any discretionary sick leave approved, at the team member’s expense.
  • If a manager has reasonable grounds to suspect that the sick leave is not genuine.  The manager will advise the team member as early as possible after the manager has formed this view and consult with them. The Company can request a medical certificate and will meet reasonable costs of obtaining a medical certificate.
  • If the company has reasonable cause to be concerned about a team member's health, whether due to illness or injury, they may be requested to undergo a medical examination by a medical specialist nominated by Noel Leeming Group Limited.  This is to determine a team member's suitability for work based rehabilitation programmes or to enable an informed decision to be made regarding continued employment.  The cost of this examination will be paid for by the Company.  If a team member does not agree to undergo a medical examination, the Company may make its decision on the basis of any other information on hand at the time.

Health Information and the Privacy Act

The Company recognises that the team member’s health is a sensitive issue and that their right to privacy and confidentiality will be respected at all times.

Medical Appointments during Work Hours

Team members are encouraged to arrange non-work related medical appointments outside normal working hours.

Medical appointments during normal working hours may only be made with the prior approval of the team member’s manager.  Any work time used for these appointments can be taken out of sick leave entitlement, or must be made up by the team member.  This will be agreed between the manager and the employee.

Concern Regarding Use of Sick Leave

Where there are concerns about the authenticity, frequency, length or pattern of a team member’s absences on sick leave, the Company will deal with the issue as an employment relationship problem.
  •                  The company will advise the team member as early as possible after the manager has a concern;
  •                  Meet with the team member to identify and clarify any issues or concerns relating to the absences
  •                  Request medical information from the team member, medical practitioner or specialist (see section on medical certificates and the circumstances this may be requested)

If after consideration the company has a view about the authenticity of the sick leave or has a continued concern about the pattern, length and frequency of the absences disciplinary action may be taken.

Where the company, after consultation with the team member, determines the absence is not related to sick leave (and therefore unauthorised) or the team member has not provided proof, when it has been requested, the company may decline the team member’s sick leave application, deduct payments already made or withhold payment until proof is provided.

In the case of team members on unspecified sick leave policy (refer relevant section within this policy)  withholding sick leave for a period of six months may also apply.

If an enquiry indicates a medical condition or injury will continue to impact on the needs of the business and a reasonable period has been provided for recovery, or a doctor has determined a person cannot work, then the company may terminate employment on medical grounds (refer to Policy 05-05 Medical).

Longer Term Absences/ Exceptional Circumstances

This provision is intended for permanent full time and key time team members and those on fixed term employment agreements who have or need to care for a spouse/partner or dependant because of a serious or long-term illness or injury e.g. due to hospitalisation or a prolonged certified medical condition.

Approval of this type of discretionary leave, to support consistency of application, will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the Employment Relations Business Partner.  Approval of such leave will be at the sole discretion of the Company.

Team Member Responsibility
The team member will need to provide the following information to their manager:
  •                  Reason for the absence;
  •                  Start date and anticipated return to work date;
  •                  Accompanying medical information in support of their absence;
  •                  Any other information the team member thinks is relevant to their request.

Manager and Employment Relation Business Partner Responsibility
In considering a request the following type of information may be considered:
  •                  Extent and nature of the illness based on medical certificates/health information provided;
  •                  Length of anticipated absence;
  •                  The type of role a person has;
  •                  Previous absence history;
  •                  The team member’s length of service;
  •                  Cost of replacement / recruiting/ what duties or alternative duties can be performed;
  •                  Realistic probability of the employee being fit to return to work in the near future;
  •                  Whether or not the team member’s manager supports the application.

The Company’s intention is to provide a reasonable period of time for recovery and if necessary, support will be offered to assist the team member to return to work.

Where an extensive absence from work is likely, a prognosis from a registered medical practitioner of the Company’s choice may be sought with the team member’s permission.  This will not occur where the team member and the Company have already agreed to a specific period of discretionary sick leave in advance of a surgical operation or other medical treatment.

The Company recognises that the team member’s health is a sensitive issue and that their right to privacy and confidentiality will be respected at all times.  Team members, however, must accept that withholding information may result in the Company making a decision based only on the information available.

Depending on the length of time and the circumstances of the situation an team member may be paid at relevant or average daily pay or at their ordinary rate of pay.

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