Absence Management: See Who's Missing and Why
Absence management from Synel gives managers a clear, live view of who’s away and what’s driving it. Sickness, leave, and attendance patterns are captured as they happen, turning absence from an after-the-fact admin task into something visible and manageable day to day.
The reality today
Spreadsheet absence tracking is always out of date. Someone calls in sick, the message gets passed around, but the central record doesn't update until someone remembers. Meanwhile, you can't see patterns - the employee with twelve single sick days looks the same as one long illness. And payroll? They find out last.
The Solution
Absence management from Synel records absence at the point it happens and tracks both frequency and duration automatically. Managers see current absence immediately, patterns emerge over time, and records stay aligned with payroll without manual updates or guesswork.
See Who's Missing Now
Traffic light dashboard shows absence status in real-time. No waiting for reports, no chasing updates.
Spot Patterns Early
Bradford Factor scoring highlights disruptive absence patterns that total hours alone would miss.
Fair and Consistent
Same tracking rules applied to everyone. Objective data replaces subjective impressions.
Payroll Stays Accurate
Absence records flow straight to payroll. Sick days and unpaid leave reflected accurately without re-keying.
Key Features
Everything you need, built in.
How Time & Attendance Works
From clocking in to payroll-ready data in a few simple steps.
Record Absence
Manager records absence via app or portal as soon as they're notified.
Categorise
Select absence type: sick leave, compassionate, medical appointment, etc.
Update Systems
Roster and payroll records update automatically. Employee flagged as absent.
Track Pattern
System tracks frequency and duration. Bradford Factor score updates in real-time.
Report
Generate reports by individual, team, or department. Identify trends and take action.
Built for Your Sector
About Absence Management
Knowing who's absent is easy. Understanding the impact and identifying patterns is harder. Synel's absence management gives you real-time visibility of your workforce, automated Bradford Factor scoring to spot problematic patterns, and detailed reporting that turns absence data into actionable insight.
Real-Time Visibility
The Presence Information Panel uses a traffic light system for instant awareness: Green means present, Orange flags exceptions, Red shows absent. Managers see immediately who's missing without checking multiple systems or waiting for end-of-day reports. One dashboard, complete visibility.
Bradford Factor Scoring
The Bradford Factor measures the impact of absence, not just the duration. Short, frequent absences disrupt operations far more than planned long-term leave—and the scoring reflects that. The system calculates each employee's score automatically, helping HR spot the "Monday morning" patterns that might otherwise look minor in total hours lost.
Custom Absence Categories
Define the absence types that matter to your organisation: Sick Leave, Training, Compassionate Leave, Medical Appointments, Jury Service—whatever you need to track. Each category feeds into reporting separately, so you can analyse patterns by type rather than treating all absence the same.
Self-Service Recording
Managers record absences via the web portal or mobile app as soon as they're notified. No paper forms, no waiting for HR to update systems. The roster updates immediately, payroll records are flagged, and absence tracking begins from day one.
Lateness Tracking
Absence management isn't just about full days off. The system tracks lateness patterns too—employees who consistently arrive ten minutes late cost the business just as much as occasional sick days. See the full picture of attendance, not just the obvious gaps.
Authorised vs Unauthorised
Quickly identify authorised and unauthorised absences across your workforce. Approved leave looks very different from no-shows in terms of operational impact. The system distinguishes between them in real-time, helping managers respond appropriately.
WTR Compliance
Working Time Directive reporting ensures employees are taking mandatory rest periods. The system flags when someone hasn't taken required leave, helping you stay compliant without manual tracking.
Integrated with Payroll
Absence data flows directly to your payroll system. Sick days, unpaid leave, and other absence types are recorded accurately without manual re-keying. Export to Sage, SAP, Pegasus, Cascade, and others ensures the pay run reflects reality.
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Time & Attendance FAQs
Common questions about time & attendance answered.
What is the Bradford Factor?
The Bradford Factor is a standard HR metric that measures the impact of employee absence. It weights short frequent absences more heavily than longer planned leave.
A single two-week illness is less disruptive than ten individual sick days scattered throughout the year.
Synel's absence management module calculates Bradford Factor scores automatically for each employee, helping HR identify problematic absence patterns that total days alone would miss.
How does holiday accrual work for hourly workers?
Unlike salaried staff with fixed holiday allowances, hourly workers accrue entitlement based on hours actually worked.
Synel's rules engine calculates this automatically. It tracks actual hours, applies accrual logic and updates balances in real-time.
When holiday is taken, pay is calculated correctly using the 52-week reference period required by legislation. This complexity is why payroll companies partner with Synel rather than building accrual logic themselves.
Can remote workers clock in using mobile phones?
Yes. The Synergy App for iOS and Android allows remote and field workers to clock in and out from their mobile devices.
GPS geofencing verifies that employees are at the correct location when they clock. You can define specific site boundaries and the system will only accept clock events from within those areas.
The app also supports expense claims, holiday requests and viewing rotas, providing full self-service for mobile workers.
See absence management in action
Book a demo to see how Synel can streamline your operations and deliver measurable ROI.
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