Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

BonusesPay & benefitsIncentives

Royal Mail to repeat sickness scheme despite controversy

by Personnel Today 1 Sep 2005
by Personnel Today 1 Sep 2005

Royal Mail’s controversial sickness incentive scheme, which gives workers who do not take time off sick the chance to win a car or holiday vouchers, is to be run again this summer.

Jon Allen, head of employee relations at the company, said this time round only workers who had not taken a day off sick for a full year would be eligible to win a car, rather than after six months as before.

But there would be many more smaller prizes, such as a holiday or vouchers, for those who managed six months.

While offering rewards had proved a real talking point among staff, it had been just one part of a much wider project, including training for 13,000 managers, more use of online tools and more OH support, Allen stressed.

In six months, sickness absence among the organisation’s 190,000 staff had fallen by 1% to 5.7%, and attendance levels had gone up 11%, meaning 1,000 more workers were turning up each day.

During the scheme, 37 workers won a new car, 70 won holiday vouchers, and 90,000 were rewarded with £150 worth of other types of vouchers.
Airports business BAA is also now considering introducing a similar scheme.

However, employers have been warned that without careful planning, following Royal Mail’s example could land them in legal hot water.

Law firm Croner said disgruntled staff could potentially make claims on the basis that they have been treated unfairly merely for exercising their statutory rights to time off sick.

Employers could also open themselves up to discrimination claims on the grounds of disability, sex and even religion, if rewards are given for full attendance without making allowances for legitimate reasons for taking time off, Croner said.

Allen said that in Royal Mail’s case, exemptions had only been made when an absence was due to disability or pregnancy.


Royal Mail
Personnel Today
Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

previous post
Prepare for new internet use laws
next post
Asda HR chief calm about union recruitment drive

You may also like

Childcare costs rocket by £200 per week, claims...

28 Sep 2023

Personnel Today Awards 2023 shortlist: Health and Wellbeing...

27 Sep 2023

How to take an intersectional approach to pay...

19 Sep 2023

Auto-enrolment into savings boosts financial wellbeing

18 Sep 2023

Unions set to produce template for pay review...

13 Sep 2023

Gender pay gap could take 63 years to...

13 Sep 2023

Pay growth catches up with inflation

12 Sep 2023

Pay confidence creating ‘perfect storm’

11 Sep 2023

Household income to fall in 2024

6 Sep 2023

Birmingham City Council effectively bankrupt after equal pay...

5 Sep 2023

  • Almost a fifth of UK workers feel undervalued – we need to solve this PROMOTED | A new report has found...Read more
  • Discover the value of CIPD accreditation PROMOTED | See how the CIPD can increase your earning potential...Read more
  • What does it mean to be an HR professional in 2024? (survey) PROMOTED | The world of HR is changing rapidly...Read more
  • The Contractor Management Mastery Pack: Everything you need to manage and pay global contractors PROMOTED | Answers to cross-border...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2023

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2023 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+