This article explains how to enter an employee's absence from work and provides a list describing the types of absences you can choose from.
Entering an absence in HR
It does not matter whether you enter the absence in HR or in the payroll update — the calculation of the sick pay compensation is the same either way. Generally speaking, long-term absences (e.g. parental leave) are better entered in the HR menu, where they will be visible and will be calculated automatically in subsequent months as well. Short-term absences, such as illness or maternity leave, can be entered in the Payroll Update menu.
In the HR menu, enter the absence on the employee's card under the Absence tab:
In the Reason for Absence field, select the type of absence. You can only choose from the preset options. For long-term absences where the end date is unknown (e.g. parental leave), you can fill in only the Start date and leave the End date field empty. Alternatively, you can enter an estimated end date and adjust it later. The fields Hours on the first day of absence and Hours on the last day of absence should only be filled in if the employee took, for example, a half-day of leave. If a full day was taken, leave these fields empty to avoid incorrect calculations.
Entering an absence in payroll update
In the payroll update, absences are entered in the same way as in the HR menu, but via the Update Absence button:
You will then be taken to the same table as in HR, where you can enter a new absence using the New button:
Description of individual absence types
VACATION
This is standard annual leave taken by the employee during the year and is calculated based on the employment law average. Once vacation is entered, the employee's remaining vacation entitlement will be reduced in the Remaining Vacation field.
ILLNESS
In the case of illness, in addition to the absence period, you must also enter the decision number in the correct format.
Illness can also be imported using an XML file via the eNeschopenka (e-sick note) import.
Please note when entering absences that span from one month to the next. Never close a sick leave entry in one month and start a new one in the following month. Doing so would cause the 14 days of employer-paid sick pay to be recalculated from the beginning. If the illness lasts longer than 14 days, the amount is calculated only for those two weeks — the remainder is then covered by the ČSSZ (Czech Social Security Administration):
CARE FOR A FAMILY MEMBER (OČR)
Care for a family member (OČR) is entered in the same way as illness — you also enter the decision number in the correct format and proceed in the same way as for illness. Since OČR is not paid by the employer but by the ČSSZ, the Amount field will show zero:
LONG-TERM NURSING CARE
Long-term nursing care is a sickness insurance benefit as defined by the ČSSZ. It covers an employee's absence when they will be caring for a family member whose attending physician at a facility providing inpatient care (typically a hospital) has determined that the family member's health condition requires full-day home care following discharge from hospital.
UNPAID LEAVE
When this type is used, the employee's working time fund will be reduced, but no wage will be paid.
QUARANTINE
This pay component was used primarily during the pandemic period and is calculated in the same way as illness:
WORK INJURY
If an employee takes time off due to a work injury, the compensation is calculated in the same way as for illness:
In this case, it is not possible to enter a decision number. Any compensation claims must be entered manually.
MATERNITY LEAVE
For an employee going on maternity leave, the hours are calculated but the amount remains empty, as the employee will receive payments directly from the ČSSZ. The decision number is not entered here either.
Please note: this applies only to employees who wish to take their remaining vacation after maternity leave. In this case, Flexi has no basis from which to calculate the employment law average (since no wage was received in the previous quarter), so the employment law average is taken from the HR menu under the Employment tab:
PATERNITY LEAVE
Paternity leave behaves in the system the same way as maternity leave — only the absence hours are displayed, and the amount is zero:
PARENTAL LEAVE
Once maternity leave has been exhausted, close it and begin parental leave — either after using any remaining vacation entitlement or on the following day.
NON-WORK INJURY
A non-work injury is calculated in the same way as illness, and the decision number is also entered in the same way:
OCCUPATIONAL DISEASE
For an occupational disease, you can also enter the decision number, and the amount will be the same as for standard illness.
Any compensation must be entered manually.
UNEXCUSED ABSENCE
In the case of unexcused absence, you may have the option "Reduce vacation for unexcused absence" enabled in your company settings. If so, the employee's vacation entitlement will be reduced by the number of unworked days.
The vacation reduction can be viewed in the payroll update:
PAID LEAVE
If an employee takes paid leave, compensation is calculated based on the employment law average.
OFF RECORD
The Off Record component does not feed into any payroll calculation. It behaves similarly to Unpaid Leave and can be used when you need to reduce an employee's wage but do not want the absence recorded anywhere else. On the payslip, the absence appears only as a time range — no compensation is calculated for it:
DOWNTIME 60%, 80%, 100%
The Downtime component was widely used during the Covid-19 period, when employees were at home and employers compensated them for either the full amount (Downtime 100%) or 80% or 60%. The amount for this absence is calculated as the corresponding percentage of the employment law average.
OFF RECORD UNEXCUSED
This component behaves similarly to the Off Record component, but is intended for unexcused absences.
MILITARY EXERCISE UNPAID
This component is used, as its name suggests, to record military exercises for which the employee is not entitled to receive a wage.
OTHER UNPAID
If none of the available unpaid absence components suits your needs, you can simply select Other Unpaid. These components differ only in name, so the choice is up to you.
PERSONAL OBSTACLES
This is paid leave that can be used for events such as a wedding, the birth of a child, and similar occasions. It is calculated based on the employment law average.
PUBLIC INTEREST
Absence for public interest reasons can be used when an employee is fulfilling civic duties (e.g. providing first aid — see § 202) or performing public functions (e.g. serving as a member of the Chamber of Deputies or the Senate — see § 201).
Print reports for sick leave
For absences such as maternity leave, illness, nursing care, and similar types, print reports for the OSSZ (District Social Security Administration) can be found in the menu under Employees – Print Outputs – For OSSZ. Here you will find two forms: Annex to the Application for Sickness Benefit and Notification of End of Incapacity for Work.
Simply select the employee and the month of absence, and all other details will be filled in automatically:
You can then save the form as a PDF or XML file, which can be sent via a data mailbox or uploaded to the ČSSZ portal.
The same applies when closing a sick leave record. If an amendment is required or you need to change the employee's employment start date, simply check the relevant checkbox and make the correction:
