Answer

Yes, under the Employment Rights Act 1996 all employees should have a statement of main terms & conditions of employment within 2 months of joining your company.

It is also a useful document to have if an employment relationship goes bad - especially if a case gets to an Employment Tribunal.

Since October 2007 when the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2007 were enacted, 20 days is enough but only if you also give them 8 days for Bank Holidays. If you aren't giving them 28 days in total, an employee can take you to an Employment Tribunal.

It is the "Default Retirement Age"

The DRA is currently 65 years & it is planned that this will be removed on 1 October 2011. Details are still being discussed & guidance will be drafted over the next few months.

There are loads of things you can do - first & foremost you need to tackle the problem - if you don't it'll only get worse !! So you should deal with them under your discipline or sickness absence policies.

I also go with the saying "prevention is better than cure" so think about things like "return to work interviews" - a few minutes catch-up after a period of sickness can work wonders !