Sandwich rule for absences

How it works

1. HR opens the attendance rules under Policies in Settings and, under Rest days, sets the rest day between two absences to Paid or Unpaid (sandwich).
2. When a month is graded, ZeniaHR looks for runs of weekly offs and holidays that were not worked.
3. If the working day just before the run and the working day just after it are both absent or leave without pay, every rest day in the run is marked as sandwiched.
4. A sandwiched rest day stays a weekly off or holiday in the day log, with the reason 'Rest day between absences, unpaid by the sandwich rule', and its pay is taken off.
5. Approved paid leave, a half day, approved work from home or on duty, or a worked rest day breaks the sandwich, so the rest day stays paid.
6. Employees see the rule as a plain sentence on My Self-Service once the attendance rules are on, and HR sees each sandwiched day in the day log.

What you can set

• Rest day between two absences: Paid, or Unpaid (sandwich); Paid by default.
• What counts as an absence here: a day graded absent, or a day of leave without pay.
• What breaks it: approved paid leave, a half day, approved work from home or on duty, or a day worked.
• Runs: a 2nd Saturday and the Sunday after it, or a Sunday and a Monday holiday, are treated as one run.
• Weekly off pay and holiday pay: set in the payroll deduction policy; the rule changes pay only when those days are paid.
• Try it on last month: shows how many payable days the rule would have removed before you save it.

Why companies use it, and why it needs care

The rule exists to stop a pattern: taking Saturday and Monday off without leave and still being paid for Sunday. Used carefully, it makes unplanned absences around weekends less attractive. Used carelessly, it punishes people for genuine emergencies. Because it cuts pay for a day nobody was expected to work, check your standing orders and the rules on deductions from wages under the Code on Wages before switching it on, and explain it to staff in writing.

Worked example: a long weekend at a Morbi ceramics unit

Ramesh Chauhan is a packing helper at a Morbi ceramics unit on ₹15,000 a month, with Sundays and the 2nd and 4th Saturdays off. His company values a day at a fixed 30 days, so one day's pay is ₹500, and it has set the rest day between two absences to Unpaid. In October 2026 he is absent without leave on Friday 9 October and Monday 12 October, either side of Saturday 10, a 2nd Saturday, and Sunday 11.

Both rest days sit between two absences, so both are sandwiched. His two absences cost ₹1,000, and the sandwiched Saturday and Sunday cost another ₹1,000, so the long weekend costs him ₹2,000 in all. Leave without pay on the Friday and Monday would give the same result. Had he taken approved casual leave for either day, or worked half of Friday, neither rest day would have been sandwiched.

Using the rule fairly

The sandwich rule works as a deterrent only when people know it exists, and it stays fair only when HR looks at the cases it catches. A short review of sandwiched days each month, before the month is finalized, keeps it that way and keeps disputes out of payroll.

• Tell staff about the rule before switching it on, with an example like the one above.
• Review the sandwiched days in the day log before finalizing each month.
• Where an absence was a genuine emergency, let the employee apply for leave or raise a correction instead.
• Run Try it on last month to see how many days the rule would have cost before you save it.

Frequently asked questions