Managing Attendance and Leave Without Mishandling Protected Rights – August 26, 2026

Attendance management gets complicated quickly when absences involve more than ordinary scheduling issues. An employee may be away because of illness, caregiving responsibilities, bereavement, injury, family obligations, disability-related restrictions, vacation conflict, or a protected statutory leave. From the manager’s point of view, the problem may be simple. The work isn’t getting done. From HR’s point of view, the situation requires a careful review before any action is taken.

The risk is that employers sometimes treat all absences the same. They apply attendance rules without checking whether a protected leave applies. They ask for too much medical information or not enough. They discipline frustration rather than misconduct. They fail to recognize when the duty to accommodate has been triggered. Those mistakes can turn an attendance problem into a human rights, employment standards, or reprisal issue.

This HR Insider webinar will help employers draw clearer lines. We’ll look at how to manage attendance concerns while respecting protected rights, how to document leave issues properly, how to involve managers without letting them overstep, and when HR should pause before moving toward discipline. The goal is a practical framework that supports both operational continuity and legal compliance.