An attendance write up is issued for absences and tardies the way a no-call write-up is issued for a no-call, and it fails in the same way: written from memory as prose about reliability, with the numbers missing. A write up for attendance that stands lists the events with their dates, states the points each scored under the policy in force, states the total now in the rolling window against the threshold, and cites the paragraph of the policy that sets those numbers. This page gives an attendance write up sample worked on one employee, and the attendance write up template a small employer fills from the record, with the free attendance points calculator on this site working the total it cites, with no account.
What an attendance write up must cite
The events, each with its date, its kind (unexcused absence, tardy, no-call) and the points it scored under the policy dated on that day; on this site's worked example 1, 0.5 and 2. The total those events make in the rolling window, the threshold and the room left. The reason given for each event and the decision made on it, so an excused event shows at zero with its reason. The policy paragraph that sets the weights, the threshold and the window, cited by number and version date. The next step, in the policy's words. Signature lines for the lead and the employee, with a line to note a refusal to sign. A write-up carrying those is the record of the conversation; one without them is a memo about it.
An attendance write up sample, worked on one employee
Events in the window: unexcused absence on the 3rd of February (1 point), tardy on the 14th of February (0.5), tardy on the 2nd of March (0.5), unexcused absence on the 20th of March (1), no-call no-show on the 8th of April (2). Total: 5 points in the rolling twelve months against a threshold of 8; 3 points of room. Reasons: asked and recorded for each; none excused. Policy cited: attendance policy dated the 1st of January, paragraphs 2 (points), 3 (threshold and window) and 4 (notice rule). Step: written warning; the policy's reminder line is 6 and the final warning is at the threshold. What crosses the line from here: three absences, or one no-call and one absence, or six tardies. Signed and dated. The calculator on this site produced the total and the crossing events.
The attendance write up template, and what fills each line
The template is the sample with the specifics blank: a table for the events with date, kind, points and reason, a line for the total, the threshold and the room, a line for the policy version and paragraphs, a line for the step, and the signatures. The events come from the roll call, the points from the policy, the total from the calculator, the paragraphs from the policy template. The free attendance policy template on this site prints the paragraphs the write-up cites, and RollCallWorks Pro drafts the write-up from the events it keeps and files it against the employee with the policy version it cited, so the next write-up can cite this one.
The events an attendance write up must not count
A write-up that lists a protected absence as an event, even at zero, is a write-up that will be read as counting it, so the events table should show excused events with their reason and the total should be the countable total alone. Leave under the FMLA, absences that are a reasonable accommodation under the ADA and service absences under USERRA are the exceptions a small crew meets; the Department of Labor's and the EEOC's pages linked below describe each. The reason column exists so the write-up can show the question was asked, which is the part of the write-up that stands up when the numbers are challenged.
Questions people ask about attendance write up
What should an attendance write up include?
Each event with its date, kind and points; the total in the rolling window against the threshold with the room left; the reason given and the decision on each event; the policy version and paragraphs cited; the next step in the policy's words; and signature lines. All from the record and the policy's five numbers.
Is there a free attendance write up template?
The structure on this page is the template: an events table, the total line, the policy citation, the step and the signatures. The free attendance policy template prints the paragraphs it cites, and the free points calculator works the total. RollCallWorks Pro drafts the write-up from the events it keeps.
How many absences before an attendance write up?
The policy decides, as a total rather than a count: most small employers issue the first write-up at the first unexcused event, as the record that the policy was explained, and a warning at the reminder total the policy names. The points calculator shows where any mix of absences and tardies sits against the threshold.