WRC recommends written appeal procedure for sick-leave decisions

The WRC recommended that a national policing employer write to a worker about its existing appeal process for a sick-leave decision and develop a written appeals procedure, in a recommendation dated 5 July 2023. The worker said he had no way to appeal a decision refusing to discount his sick leave. The employer acknowledged there was no written procedure but said an appeals process existed and had been explained to him. The adjudication officer said the appeal decision-maker should be independent of the original decision and have access to the material on which it was based. The WRC recommended that the worker engage with the existing mechanism, that the parties work towards resolving the appeal within six weeks, and that the employer draft a written procedure to share with the representative organisation.