Who it’s for: All Sense HR users
Platform: Sense HR
Available on: Team / Professional / Elite / Enterprise
Before you begin:
☑️ Your organisation decides how employees report sickness in Sense HR.
Depending on how Sickness has been configured for you, you may be able to:
use Notify manager from the Dashboard to report that you are sick today
record your own Sickness directly in Planner; or
record Sickness for another employee.
Follow the sickness-reporting process set by your organisation.
🖊️ Note: These options work differently. Notify manager sends a sickness notification for an authorised user to review and record. Sickness Self-booking adds the Sickness event directly to Planner.
For more information about the different ways Sickness works in Sense HR, see:
Notify your manager that you are sick today
If your organisation uses the Dashboard sickness widget, you can use Notify manager to report sickness that starts today.
Go to Dashboard.
Find the Sick leave - Notify manager widget.
Click Notify manager.
Under When did this start?, select:
• Now — if you’ve just started feeling unwell.
• Earlier today — if your sickness started earlier today.Under Reason, select a Sickness reason.
Reason is optional because you may not know the appropriate Sickness reason.Under Add comment, enter a message for your manager.
Add comment is required so the person reviewing your notification has information about your absence.Click Notify manager.
✅ Your manager is notified that you are sick. An authorised user can then review the notification and record the Sickness event in your Planner.
💡 Tip: Use Add comment to give your manager any information that will help them manage your absence. For example, you could say how unwell you are, whether you expect to be off for more than one day, or when you expect to provide an update.
You can include information about your symptoms if it is relevant, but you don’t need to provide more personal or medical information than is necessary.
Tell your manager when your sickness started and add any useful information.
🖊️ Note: Notify manager reports sickness starting today. It doesn’t let you enter a future Start Date or add the Sickness event directly to Planner.
If today is a non-working day
Whether Sickness can be recorded on a non-working day depends on how your organisation has configured Sickness for you.
If today is a non-working day and Sickness isn’t allowed on non-working days, you may not be able to click Notify manager.
For example, if Sunday is a non-working day, you may not be able to use the Dashboard widget on Sunday to report that you’ll be sick for your Monday shift.
If you can’t submit the notification because today is a non-working day, use the Dashboard sickness widget on your next working day. If your organisation requires you to report sickness before then, follow its usual sickness-reporting process.
What happens after you notify sickness?
Submitting a sickness notification doesn’t add the Sickness event to your Planner immediately.
An authorised user reviews your notification and records the Sickness event for you.
Once your sickness has been recorded, the Dashboard widget shows:
You’re recorded as off sick
The Sick leave widget shows when your Sickness has been recorded.
💡 Tip: Check how your Sickness has been recorded.
The Dashboard shows that you’re recorded as off sick, but not whether your Sickness has an End date. Open your profile Planner and click the Sickness event to check. If it’s open-ended, you’ll see:
⚠️ No return date has been recorded
... and you won’t need to notify sickness each day unless your organisation requires you to provide daily updates.
For information about how an authorised user processes your notification, see:
Record a Sickness event in Calendar or Planner
Where your access allows it, you can record a Sickness Event directly in Calendar or Planner.
You can record:
your own Sickness, where Self-booking is available to you; or
Sickness for another employee, where you have access to that person and permission to book Sickness for them.
Recording Sickness this way adds the Sickness Event directly to the employee’s Planner. It doesn’t create a sickness notification for someone else to review first.
Record your own Sickness
From your profile Planner:
Click your Name/Avatar in the upper-right.
Click Manage profile.
Go to Planner.
Click Book.
Select Sickness.
Click Add.
Or from company Calendar:
Go to Calendar.
Click Book.
Select Sickness
Click Add.
Record Sickness for someone else
Where your access allows it:
Go to Calendar and click Book, or open the employee’s profile Planner and click Book.
Select Sickness.
Click Add.
✅ The full Book event panel opens.
Record your Sickness event
Check that Sickness is selected under Event.
Check or select the name in Assign to.
Select the Start Date.
If the End date is known, select the End date. Otherwise, leave it blank to record the Sickness as open-ended.
Select the Sickness reason.
Under Duration mode, select from the options available:
• Full day(s) — record complete working days.
• Part of day — record a predefined portion of a working day.
• Time-based — enter specific Start and End times.Complete any additional fields shown for the selected Duration mode.
🖊️ Note: If you leave End date blank and select Part of day or Time-based, you only need to enter the part-day option or times for the Start Date. There is no End date to configure while the Sickness remains open-ended.
Add any Notes, if required.
Check the Booking Summary.
Click Add.
The Sickness event is added directly to profile Planner and Calendar.
 |  Enter the details of your Sickness event. Leave the End date blank if you aren’t sure when you’ll return. |
🖊️ Note: A Sickness event can cover several days and start or finish partway through a working day. This lets you record one continuous period of sickness as a single Sickness event.
For more information about full-day, partial-day and multi-day bookings, see:
Leave Sickness open-ended if you aren’t sure when you’ll return
Only enter an End date if you know it.
If you’re unsure, leave it blank.
Sense HR records the Sickness as open-ended until and end date is recorded. This helps keep one continuous period of sickness together as a single Sickness event.
💡 Tip: Avoid creating separate Sickness events for each day of the same continuous illness where possible. The Fit note duration threshold is calculated separately for each booking, so leave the End date blank if you aren’t sure when you’ll return.
Your open-ended Sickness remains open until your return is recorded.
For more information, see:
If Sense HR says a Fit note is required
When you select a Sickness reason, Sense HR tells you if that reason requires a Fit note.
A Fit note can also become required later if your Sickness reaches the Fit note threshold. If this happens, Sense HR notifies you that a Fit note is needed.
You can still complete the Sickness booking when the Fit note warning is shown.
Sense HR doesn’t currently provide a way to upload or submit the Fit note. Provide it using your organisation’s usual process, such as by email or in person.
Sense HR uses a To Do to track whether the Fit note has been received. Once your organisation receives it, the To Do can be marked as complete.
If you can’t book Sickness on the selected date
Whether you can record Sickness on a non-working day depends on the applicable Sickness rule.
If the selected date isn’t a working day and the Sickness rule configuration doesn’t allow booking on non-working days, Sense HR displays:
⚠️ Cannot book this event on a non working day.
Change the Start Date to a working day.
For example, if someone is sick on Sunday and they know they won’t be able to work on Monday, they can select Monday as the Start Date when booking a Sickness event.
FAQs
Click for answers to frequently asked questions
Click for answers to frequently asked questions
Q: How do I report that I am sick today from the Sense HR Dashboard?
A: To report that you are sick today from the Sense HR Dashboard, find the Dashboard sickness widget showing Sick leave – Notify manager and click Notify manager. Select Now or Earlier today, select a Sickness reason, add a comment and click Notify manager.
This sends a sickness notification for an authorised user to review and record. It doesn’t add the Sickness event directly to your Planner.
If you can’t see the Sick leave – Notify manager widget, your organisation may not use the Dashboard sickness notification process. Follow your organisation’s usual sickness-reporting process instead.
Q: What is the difference between Notify manager and booking my own Sickness event in Sense HR?
A: Notify manager on the Sense HR Dashboard reports that you are sick today and sends a notification for an authorised user to review. The authorised user then records the Sickness event for you.
Booking your own Sickness event adds the event directly to your Planner. Sickness Self-booking is only available where your organisation has enabled it for you.
Q: How can I check whether my Sickness has been recorded as open-ended in Sense HR?
A: To check whether your Sickness has been recorded as open-ended, open your profile Planner and click the Sickness event.
If it’s open-ended, you’ll see ⚠️ No return date has been recorded. If an End date has been recorded, you’ll see the date instead.
Q: Do I need to create a new Sickness event every day while I am off sick in Sense HR?
A: No. Avoid creating a separate Sickness event for each day of the same continuous illness where possible. If you’re booking your own Sickness and aren’t sure when you’ll return, leave the End date blank so it can remain as one open-ended Sickness event.
If you use the Dashboard sickness widget, an authorised user decides whether to record your Sickness with an End date or as open-ended. If your recorded Sickness ends and you’re still sick, follow your organisation’s sickness-reporting process.
Q: Why can’t I click Notify manager in the Sick leave widget on my Sense HR Dashboard?
A: You may be unable to click Notify manager in the Dashboard sickness widget if Sickness can’t be recorded for you on that day. For example, this can happen on a non-working day when your applicable Sickness rule doesn’t allow Sickness to be booked on a non-working day.
If today is a non-working day, use the widget on your next working day. If your organisation requires you to report sickness before then, follow its usual sickness-reporting process.
Q: Can I report on Sunday in Sense HR that I will be sick for my Monday shift?
A: The Dashboard sickness widget only reports sickness starting today. If Sunday is a non-working day and your Sickness configuration doesn’t allow Sickness on non-working days, you may not be able to submit a notification on Sunday.
If Sickness Self-booking is available to you, you can use Book event and select Monday as the Start Date. Otherwise, follow your organisation’s usual sickness-reporting process.
Q: How do I add my own Sickness event directly to Planner in Sense HR?
A: To add your own Sickness event directly to Planner, open your profile Planner or company Calendar and click Book. Select Sickness and click Add to open the full booking panel. Enter the Sickness details, check the Booking Summary and click Add.
You can only use this route when Sickness Self-booking has been enabled for you.
Q: Can I record my own open-ended Sickness event in Sense HR if I don’t know when I’ll return?
A: Yes. When recording your own Sickness event in Sense HR, leave the End date blank if you aren’t sure when you’ll return. Sense HR records the Sickness as open-ended until your return is recorded.
Leaving the End date blank helps keep the same continuous illness together as one Sickness event instead of creating separate daily events.
You can only use this route when Sickness Self-booking has been enabled for you.
Q: Can I record part of a working day as Sickness in Sense HR?
A: Yes, where partial-day Sickness booking has been enabled for you. When recording your Sickness event in Sense HR, the available Duration modes can include Part of day or Time-based, depending on how Sickness has been configured.
A Sickness event can also cover several days with a partial Start date or End date, allowing one continuous period of sickness to be recorded as a single event.
Q: Why does Sense HR say a Fit note is required when I book my own Sickness event?
A: When you book your own Sickness event, Sense HR displays Fit note required if the selected Sickness reason is configured to require one. A Fit note can also become required later if your Sickness reaches the Fit note duration threshold, from the 8th calendar day of sickness.
The Dashboard sickness widget doesn’t show Fit note requirements when you use Notify manager.
Q: How do I upload a Fit note in Sense HR?
A: You can’t currently upload or submit a Fit note in Sense HR.
Provide the Fit note using your organisation’s usual process, such as by email or in person. Sense HR uses a To Do to track whether the Fit note has been received.