Who it’s for: Sense HR Administrators and users with permission to manage Event Manager
Platform: Sense HR
Available on: Team / Professional / Elite / Enterprise
Before you begin
☑️ Decide whether different groups need different Sickness settings.
☑️ Decide which Sickness reasons your organisation needs.
☑️ For each reason, decide whether a Fit note or Return to Work process is required, whether the absence is paid, and whether it should be included in your absence scheme.
☑️ If you use Return to Work forms, make sure the required form has been configured.
For information about planning rules and Scope, see:
For information about Self-booking, booking by others and Edit/Delete permissions, see:
About the Sickness Event
Sense HR provides one system Sickness Event for recording sickness absence.
You don’t need separate Sickness Events for different illnesses or employee groups.
Instead:
Sickness reasons identify why the employee is absent, such as Cold, Flu or Stress.
Rules let different groups use different Sickness settings.
Reason settings determine what happens when each reason is used for people in the rule’s Scope.
The system Sickness Event can’t be deleted.
📖 Example: Your organisation requires a Return to Work process for Stress, but not Flu.
Both use the same Sickness Event. Turn Return to work (RTW) ON for Stress and leave it OFF for Flu.
Understand Sickness reasons and reason settings
There are two parts to managing Sickness reasons:
Edit details controls which Sickness reasons exist. Use it to add, rename or delete reasons.
Sickness reasons within a rule controls how each reason behaves for people included in that rule’s Scope.
This means the same Sickness reason can have different settings for different groups.
📖 Example: Your organisation uses the reason Operation for everyone, but one group requires a Return to Work process after an Operation while another doesn’t.
Keep one Operation reason and configure its settings differently in each applicable Sickness rule.
Navigation path
From the Sense HR Dashboard, go to:
Settings > Calendar & Planner > Event manager
Click Sickness.
Select the rule from the tabs at the top of the configuration page.
Configure Sickness rules
The Sickness Event can have multiple rules where different groups need different settings.
Each rule has its own:
Scope;
Access control;
Edit & Delete permissions;
Booking behaviour; and
Sickness reason settings.
The default rule is assigned to Everyone. Add further rules where different groups need different Sickness configuration.
Each person should be included in only one rule for the Sickness Event.
For guidance on Scope, Smart filters, exclusions and conflicts, see:
Configure who can book and manage Sickness
Use Access control and Edit & Delete permissions to control who can book Sickness and who can edit or delete existing Sickness bookings.
For example, Self-booking can allow employees to add their own Sickness directly to Planner where they also have the required Access Role permission.
🖊️ Note: Sickness Self-booking is different from Notify manager in the Dashboard sickness widget. Notify manager sends a sickness notification for an authorised user to review and record. Self-booking adds the Sickness Event directly to the employee’s Planner.
For a consistent sickness-reporting process, it’s best to use one route for the same group of employees rather than asking them to use both.
For the full access and permissions guidance, see:
For employee sickness reporting, see:
Configure partial-day Sickness bookings
Go to Booking behaviour.
Turn Allow partial-day bookings ON to make the Part of day Duration mode available when Sickness is recorded.
When enabled, select the Minimum booking unit:
Quarter Day
Half Day
This sets the smallest fraction available under Part of day.
🖊️ Note: Time-based is a separate Duration mode and may also allow Sickness to be recorded for less than a full working day. Turning Allow partial-day bookings OFF doesn’t necessarily prevent Time-based bookings.
Sickness doesn’t have the general Booking constraints, Approval or Outside working hours settings available for Working and Time-off Events.
For more information about Duration modes and partial-day booking behaviour, see:
View Sickness reasons from Manage events
On the Manage events page, click the arrow 
at the start of the Sickness row to expand it.
The expanded row shows the Sickness reasons currently available for the system Sickness Event.
Expand the Sickness Event to quickly view its available reasons.
You can also delete an eligible Sickness reason directly from the expanded list.
🖊️ Note: You can’t delete a Sickness reason if Planner transactions or system records are linked to it.
Add, rename or delete Sickness reasons
Use Edit details when you need to add or rename a Sickness reason, or to manage the reason list while editing the Sickness Event.
Open Sickness and click Edit details.
From the Sickness reasons list, you can:
click the edit icon
to rename a reason;click the delete icon
to remove a reason; orclick + Add sickness reason to add one.
When adding or renaming a reason, enter the name and click the ✓ to save it.
Click Save changes when you’ve finished editing the Sickness Event details.
Use Edit details to add, rename or delete the Sickness reasons available for the system Sickness Event.
🖊️ Note: New Sickness reasons use the default settings: Include in absence scheme ON, with Fit note required, Return to work (RTW) and Paid absence OFF. Review the reason in each applicable rule and change these settings where required.
Configure Sickness reason behaviour
Select the rule you want to configure, then go to Sickness reasons.
The table shows each reason’s current configuration, including:
Fit note;
Return to Work;
Paid absence; and
Absence scheme.
Click a reason to configure how it behaves for people included in the selected rule’s Scope.
Review the Sickness reason settings for the selected rule and click a reason to configure its behaviour.
Require a Fit note
Turn Fit note required ON where an employee must provide a Fit note when the reason is selected.
Leave it OFF where a Fit note isn’t required for that reason.
When a Fit note is required, Sense HR creates a To Do to track whether it has been provided.
Sense HR doesn’t currently provide a way for the employee to upload or submit the Fit note. The employee should provide it using your organisation’s usual process, such as by email or in person. Once it has been received, mark the To Do as complete.
📖 Example: Your organisation might require a Fit note for Long term illness but not for a short absence recorded as Cold.
Require a Return to Work process
Where Return to work (RTW) is ON, Elite and Enterprise organisations can select the Return to work form used for the process. Available forms are configured in Screen Designer.
Leave it OFF where no Return to Work process is required.
📖 Example: Your organisation might require a Return to Work process following an Operation or Long term illness, while not requiring one for every short-term Sickness reason.
Select a Return to Work form
Where Return to work (RTW) is ON and Return to Work forms are available for your plan (Elite and Enterprise), select the Return to work form to use.
The available forms come from the Return to Work forms configured for your organisation in Screen Designer.
Configure the processes and absence settings triggered when this Sickness reason is used for people in the rule’s Scope.
🖊️ Note: Return to work (RTW) determines whether the Return to Work process is required. Return to work form selects the form used for that process where form selection is available.
Mark the reason as paid absence
Turn Paid absence ON where days recorded under the Sickness reason should be treated as paid absence.
Leave it OFF where they should be treated as unpaid.
The Sickness reasons summary shows each reason as Paid or Unpaid.
Include the reason in the absence scheme
Turn Include in absence scheme ON where the Sickness reason should be included in absence-scheme calculations, such as Bradford Factor and trigger-point calculations.
Leave it OFF where absences recorded with that reason shouldn’t be included.
🖊️ Note: Include in absence scheme is ON by default for a new Sickness reason.
Save the reason settings
When you’ve finished configuring a Sickness reason, click Save reason.
Repeat this for each reason that needs different settings.
When the rule is ready, click Save changes to save the rule configuration.
If Sickness has multiple rules, configure the reason settings separately for each rule as required.
Configure different Sickness settings for different groups
Because Sickness reason behaviour is configured per rule, the same reason can trigger different processes for different groups.
📖 Example: Your organisation uses the Sickness reason Stress for all employees.
The standard Everyone rule has:
Fit note ON
Return to work (RTW) ON;
Paid absence ON; and
Include in absence scheme ON.
A Directors rule has:
Fit note OFF
Return to work (RTW) OFF;
Paid absence ON; and
Include in absence scheme OFF.
Both groups use the same Stress reason, but their applicable Sickness rule determines which settings apply.
Best practice
✔ Use one system Sickness Event
Use Sickness reasons and rules for different sickness policies rather than creating additional Sickness Events.
✔ Keep the Sickness reason list useful
Use reason names employees will understand when recording an absence. Avoid creating duplicate reasons for differences that can be handled through rules.
✔ Configure processes per reason
Require Fit notes and Return to Work only for the reasons where your policy needs them.
✔ Check the rule’s Scope
Reason settings apply to people included in the selected rule’s Scope. Use separate rules where different groups genuinely need different Sickness configuration.
✔ Use one employee sickness-reporting route consistently
Where possible, avoid asking the same group to use both Self-booking and the Notify manager sickness-notification process.
FAQs
Click for answers to frequently asked questions
Click for answers to frequently asked questions
Q: Can I create another Sickness Event in Event Manager?
A: You can’t create another Sickness Event in Event Manager because Sense HR provides one system Sickness Event for recording sickness absence.
Use Sickness reasons for different causes of absence and separate Sickness rules where different groups need different settings.
Q: Can I delete the system Sickness Event in Event Manager?
A: You can’t delete the system Sickness Event from Event Manager.
Configure its rules and Sickness reasons to match your organisation’s requirements.
Q: What’s the difference between Sickness reasons in Edit details and Sickness reasons in an Event Manager rule?
A: Sickness reasons under Edit details controls which reasons exist for the system Sickness Event.
Sickness reasons within an Event Manager rule controls how those reasons behave for people included in that rule’s Scope, including Fit note, Return to Work, Paid absence and absence-scheme settings.
Q: How do I add a new Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: To add a new Sickness reason in Event Manager, open the system Sickness Event and click Edit details.
Click + Add sickness reason, enter the reason name, click the ✓ to save it, then click Save changes.
Configure the new reason’s behaviour separately within each applicable Sickness rule.
Q: How do I rename a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: To rename a Sickness reason in Event Manager, open the system Sickness Event and click Edit details.
Click the edit icon beside the reason, change its name, click the ✓, then click Save changes.
Q: How do I require a Fit note for a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: To require a Fit note for a Sickness reason in Event Manager, select the applicable Sickness rule and go to Sickness reasons.
Click the reason, turn Fit note required ON and click Save reason.
The Fit note requirement applies when that reason is used for people included in the rule’s Scope.
Q: How do I require a Return to Work process for a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: To require a Return to Work process for a Sickness reason in Event Manager, select the applicable Sickness rule and go to Sickness reasons.
Click the reason and turn Return to work (RTW) ON.
Team and Professional plans use the standard Return to Work form. On Elite and Enterprise, select the Return to work form to use, then click Save reason.
Q: Can different groups have different settings for the same Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: Yes. Different groups can have different settings for the same Sickness reason because reason settings are configured separately for each Sickness rule.
For example, the same Operation reason can require a Return to Work process for one group but not another.
Use separate rules with mutually exclusive Scopes for groups that need different Sickness settings.
Q: What does Paid absence mean for a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: Paid absence determines whether absence recorded using that Sickness reason is treated as paid or unpaid.
The Sickness reasons summary shows the current setting as Paid or Unpaid.
Q: What does Include in absence scheme mean for a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: Include in absence scheme determines whether absence recorded using that Sickness reason is included in absence-scheme calculations.
The Event Manager UI identifies these as Bradford Factor and trigger-point calculations.
Q: Can employees book their own Sickness directly into Planner in Sense HR?
A: Employees can book their own Sickness directly into Planner where Self-booking is ON in their applicable Sickness rule and their Access Role has Add permission for Planner under Own profile.
Self-booking adds the Sickness Event directly to the employee’s Planner.
Q: What’s the difference between Sickness Self-booking and Notify manager in Sense HR?
A: Sickness Self-booking adds the Sickness Event directly to the employee’s Planner.
Notify manager in the Dashboard sickness widget sends a sickness notification for an authorised user to review and record.
For a consistent sickness-reporting process, use one route for the same group of employees rather than asking them to use both.
Q: Can employees record part of a day as Sickness in Sense HR?
A: Employees can record Sickness using the Part of day Duration mode where Allow partial-day bookings is ON in their applicable Sickness rule.
The configured Minimum booking unit determines whether Quarter Day or Half Day is the smallest fraction available.
Time-based may also allow Sickness to be recorded for less than a full working day.
Q: Why can’t I configure Approval or Outside working hours for Sickness in Event Manager?
A: Approval and Outside working hours aren’t available for Sickness because Sickness records an absence rather than a request to book time.
Sickness doesn’t require booking approval. Outside working hours is a booking option for Working Events and Time-off Events without Entitlement, so it isn’t part of the Sickness configuration.
Use the Sickness rule to configure the settings that do apply, including Access control, Edit & Delete permissions, Booking behaviour and Sickness reason settings.
Q: Why can’t I see Return to work form for a Sickness reason in Event Manager?
A: Return to work form is available on Elite and Enterprise plans when Return to work (RTW) is ON for the Sickness reason.
Team and Professional plans use the standard Return to Work form. Elite and Enterprise plans can select a Return to Work form configured in Screen Designer.
Q: If I add a Sickness reason in Event Manager, do I need to configure it for every rule?
A: A new Sickness reason in Event Manager is available across the system Sickness Event and starts with the default reason settings.
Review the new reason in each applicable Sickness rule and change its settings where different behaviour is required.
Q: How does an employee upload a Fit note in Sense HR?
A: An employee can’t currently upload or submit a Fit note in Sense HR.
When Fit note required applies to their Sickness reason, Sense HR creates a Fit note required To Do to track whether the Fit note has been provided.
The employee should provide the Fit note outside Sense HR using your organisation’s usual process, such as by email or in person. Once it has been provided, check that the To Do has been marked as complete.
Q: Where is an employee’s Fit note stored in Sense HR?
A: A Fit note isn’t currently uploaded or stored through the Sense HR Sickness process.
The employee should provide the Fit note using your organisation’s usual process. Sense HR uses the Fit note required To Do to track whether it has been provided.
Q: Where can I view all Sickness reasons in Event Manager?
A: To view the Sickness reasons available for the system Sickness Event, go to Settings > Calendar & Planner > Event manager and expand the Sickness row on the Manage events page.