I am trying to find a sample policy on "No Call, No Contact, No Notice" which I used to have with a prior employer.  Basically, if you are scheduled for a shift and did not call, contact or give notice to anyone to that affect, it was considered job abandonment and you could be separated from employment.  Does anyone know of or have a sample policy of this sort available?  We recently separated a team member who failed to show up for work and did not call to give notice that she would not be in--she did this twice in 2 weeks, so we separated her.  It is not clearly addressed in basic attendance policies, so we would like a separate policy for this.  Any help is appreciated.

 HR Manager

Ophthalmology practice

We currently have a policy that states "Employees are required to report for work punctually and to work all scheduled hours. Employees must personally contact their immediate supervisor as far in advance as possible whenever they are unable to report for work, know they will be late or must leave early, but no later than the start of his/her regular shift.  An employee who is absent from work for two consecutive days wtihout proper notification, or who is absent on more than one occasion without proper notification is considered to have abandoned his/her position and voluntarily terminated his/her employment as of the last day worked.

 

Hope that helps

HR Manager

Banking

Although we are a construction firm we have as part of our "Attendance, Absenteeism and Tardiness" policy the "Abandonment of Job." Not having our field personnel on site when assigned is serious when schedules must be met. This not only leads to schedule delays but can result in back charges. Our policy is a bit more lenient as employees who are absent for 3 days or longer without calling their supervisor will be considered to have abandoned their job and will be terminated. We notify them by certified mail and hold their last check until all equipment is in. If they are absent less than 3 days they are subject to disciplinary action and if the they repeat the offense then they are terminated. So we do give them a chance. We have found this very effect in getting them to call in.

I think seperation after one day is a little bit harsh.  There are many other circumstances that you are not aware of.  The person could have been in an accident, could have an illness that requires them to be in the hospital and unable to call. etc.  I know most will say, then the family should call, but if you are dealing with an emergency situation, the last thing you are thinking about is calling the employer of the person.  It is possible that the reason will require you to give out FMLA paperwork because it could be an FMLA applicable absence. 

In the past I have used the 3 day, no call, no show rule.  We did still try to contact the person to make sure that there was nothing wrong.

"Deemed resignation" is what you are looking for.  The standard of 3 days' failure to appear for work or contact the employer being adequate to deem the employee to have resigned their position is case established.  That's why nearly all policies on the topic adhere to 3 NCNS prior to separation.  Such policies normally provide for considerable leeway for management to ensure that FMLA issues do not interfere and so that the company is not bound to fire someone for breaking their leg on a back packing trip in the Andes mountains.