Automated absence monitoring and absence for gender reassignment in Great Britain

Attendance systems increasingly count absences automatically, sort them by type and raise warnings or flags when a level is reached. The Equality Act 2010 has a specific rule about one kind of absence: absence because of gender reassignment. It sets a floor for how that absence is treated compared with sickness absence, and it applies whether a manager or a system applies the rule.

The short answer: at work, an employer discriminates against a transsexual person if, in relation to an absence because of gender reassignment, it treats them less favourably than it would if the absence had been because of sickness or injury, or less favourably than for another reason where that is not reasonable (s16(1)-(2)).

Who is covered

A person has the protected characteristic of gender reassignment if they are proposing to undergo, are undergoing or have undergone a process, or part of a process, for the purpose of reassigning their sex by changing physiological or other attributes of sex (s7(1)). The Act uses the term "transsexual person" for someone with that characteristic (s7(2)).

What section 16 requires

• Which absences: an absence is because of gender reassignment if it is because the person is proposing to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone the process, or part of it (s16(3)).
• The sickness comparison: the employer must not treat the person less favourably than it would if the absence were because of sickness or injury (s16(2)(a)).
• Other reasons: nor less favourably than it would if the absence were for some other reason, where it is not reasonable to treat the person less favourably (s16(2)(b)).
• At work: the section applies for the purposes of Part 5 of the Act, which covers work (s16(1)).

Where automated attendance systems come in

• Absence categories: if a system has no suitable category, absence for gender reassignment may be logged as unauthorised or as "other" absence that counts more heavily than sickness. That can lead to less favourable treatment than sickness absence would get.
• Triggers and warnings: a trigger that counts this absence toward a warning or review level when sickness absence would not be counted, or would be counted more leniently, can treat the person less favourably.
• Pay and scores: where pay, bonuses, shift allocation or performance scores draw on attendance data, the same comparison applies to those outcomes.
• Privacy: recording the reason for an absence is sensitive information. Employers can keep the detail visible only to the people who need it while still making sure the system treats the absence correctly.

Software does not change who is responsible. If the employer acts on the system's output, it is the employer's treatment. For the general rules, see direct discrimination, and for absences linked to a disability, discrimination arising from disability.

Practical steps

• Employers: check how your attendance system categorises absence, make sure absence because of gender reassignment is treated at least as favourably as sickness absence in triggers, pay and scores, and let a person review any automatic warning before it is issued.
• Workers: tell your employer in writing that an absence is because of gender reassignment if you are comfortable doing so, ask how the system will record it, and keep copies of any warnings or scores that count it.

For time limits and the burden of proof, see time limits and the burden of proof. For the Act's other workplace rules, see AI and the Equality Act 2010.

This page covers Great Britain and is general information on the law as at 2 November 2026, not legal advice.