Campaign launched to cut Lancashire police sickness

1:30pm Sunday 24th August 2008

Comments (3)   Have your say »

LANCASHIRE'S police officers are being told not to pull a sickie over minor coughs and sneezes - or risk losing the chance of promotion.

The force is also asking officers to consider the effects of their sick days on other colleagues as part of its drive to cut down on police absence.

Cops have been asked to remember the slogan ' absence makes a friend work harder' when considering whether or not to take a sick day and the forces sickness rates are now at an all time low.

For the year ending 31 March 2008, police officer sickness levels were reported at the equivalent of 7.98 lost working days per officer. There are now approximately 50 extra police officers available every day due to these improvements in sickness, when compared to figures in 2003.

Ashley Judd, director of human resources, said: "It is about motivation and about the person who has a sniffle or is feeling under the weather, it is about them wanting to get out of bed when the alarm goes off and it is dark and cold outside."

Officers who want to be promoted or move to a specialist unit will have to take less than nine days off sick per year. The force will also concentrate on fast tracking cases of officer injury, so that they get physiotherapy, treatments and scans or medical consultations quicker.

Steve Edwards, chair of Lancashire's Police Federation said: "Any move that will make people stay in work as long as they are fit is supported by us. However, an officer will be able to appeal the eight days if he has been seriously ill or injured. It should be used as a proper toll to get people back to work and not as a hammer to bash officers with."

He added: "My only concern is that there may not be enough people in the welfare department - physios, counsellors and so on - to deal with the situation. We should not make any promises that we cannot deliver."