WFM UK: Bradford Factor – Fourth & HotSchedules Customer Success Portal

Overview

The Bradford Factor is a widely used method for monitoring employee absence, designed to highlight patterns that are particularly disruptive to a business. Rather than focusing solely on the total number of days absent, it places greater emphasis on the frequency of absences, recognising that multiple short, unplanned absences can be more challenging to manage operationally than a single, longer period of leave.

Importantly, the Bradford Factor is not just a trigger for absence management processes, but also a tool to help identify employees who may need additional support. Irregular or frequent absence patterns can sometimes indicate underlying health, well-being, or personal issues. By surfacing these patterns early, organisations are better positioned to carry out timely welfare checks and have informed, supportive conversations with employees, ensuring a more balanced and responsible approach to absence management.

Important: From 26th March 2026, some of the functionality below will become available.

Calculation

The Bradford Factor is calculated using the following formula:

Bradford Score = S² × D

Where:

S = the number of absence instances (spells) over a defined period
D = the total number of days absent over the same period

The squaring of “S” means that repeated instances of absence have a significantly greater impact on the overall score than fewer, longer absences.

Example

Two employees each record a total of 6 days’ absence over the same period:

Employee A

1 instance of absence lasting 6 consecutive days
Calculation: 1² × 6 = 6

Employee B

6 separate instances of one-day absence
Calculation: 6² × 6 = 216

Although both employees have the same total number of days absent, Employee B’s Bradford score is substantially higher due to the frequency of absence. This demonstrates how the Bradford Factor helps to identify patterns that may require further review.

Global Settings

From 26th March 2026, the Global Settings below allow control over how the Bradford Factor is surfaced and applied across the system. While Bradford scores are always calculated in the background, these settings determine whether they are visible within the user interface.

When enabled, administrators can select from the available reference period options to ensure the displayed scores align with the organisation’s chosen absence monitoring approach.

Go to HR > Administration > Global Settings > Edit Default Employee Settings
The first setting to enable (if not already) is Display employee absence data on absence editing screen

**Fig.1 - "Display employee absence data on absence editing screen" Global Setting**

When this setting is enabled, within the employee's Absence screen, this container will show Company Sick Pay (CSP) details, if applicable.

Note: If the employee does not have a contract (thus no CSP data), then this container will not appear unless Bradford Factor is enabled to show - see Fig.3.

**Fig.2 - Employee "Absence Data" on screen (Setting Enabled)**

Referring back to Fig.1, when the Display employee absence data on absence editing screen is enabled, then the Show Bradford Factor setting will appear for selection.

**Fig.3 - "Show Bradford Factor" Global Setting**

When this setting is enabled, then within the aforementioned container (Fig.2), the Bradford Factor score will be visible as well (Fig.4).

**Fig.4 - Bradford Factor Score in Employee Absence Screen**

**Fig.5 - Bradford Factor Calculation Reference Period Settings**

From Employee's First Absence

This is the default Bradford Factor calculation used before enhancements (made on 26th March 20206).

Requires the employee to have a contract assigned, as the reference period is derived from the contract’s absence settings.

Contract path: HR > Company Admin > Contracts > Select Contract > Absence Settings

**Fig.6 - Contract Absence Configuration**

Employees without a contract will not have a Bradford Factor score displayed.

Uses the standard Bradford Factor calculation, including all applicable absences within the contract-defined reference period.

Important: Until 26th March 2026, this is the default setting used by the system. Only from this date will the two settings below be available.

Fixed From Custom Date

Allows users to define a fixed annual reference period for Bradford Factor calculations by entering a single start date that applies to all employees
The selected date represents the start of the annual period (e.g. 01 January sets the period as 01 January to 31 December, with scores resetting to 0 each year)
Uses the standard Bradford Factor calculation, including all applicable absences within the defined reference period
Requires a valid date to be entered; if enabled without both day and month selected, an error is shown:
- “Please select both day and month for the custom Bradford Factor date.”
When enabled (and visibility is turned on), Bradford Factor scores are always displayed in the employee absence record, even where the score is 0
Applies independently of employee contract configuration

Rolling Year Bradford Factor Calculation

Introduces a rolling annual reference period, anchored to each employee’s first recorded absence
Mirrors the “From Employee’s First Absence” approach, but without any dependency on employee contract configuration
Uses the standard Bradford Factor calculation, including all applicable absences within the defined rolling reference period
- The rolling Bradford Factor reference period looks back 52 weeks from the current date, with absences automatically dropping out of scope as they fall outside of that window rather than resetting at a fixed point.
When enabled (and visibility is turned on), Bradford Factor scores are always displayed in the employee absence record, even where the score is 0
Applies regardless of whether the employee has a contract configured

Absence Type Configuration

From 26th March 2026, a new setting will be available within Absence Type configuration to give greater control over how Bradford Factor scores are calculated. This allows administrators to exclude specific absence types from the calculation, ensuring that non-relevant absences, such as Jury Duty or other non-sickness-related events, do not impact an employee’s Bradford score. This helps maintain more accurate and meaningful absence monitoring.

Go to HR or Payroll > Administration > Absence Types > Select Absence Type
A new setting called Exclude from Bradford Factor is available

When an absence type is updated with this setting enabled, Bradford Factor scores will immediately recalculate.

**Fig.7 - Exclude Absence Types from Bradford Factor Calculation**

Bradford Factor in Employee Records

This section explains how the Bradford Factor operates in practice within employee records. While previous sections outline how scores are configured and displayed, here, the focus is on how the score behaves over time as absence records are added, updated, or removed.

The Bradford Factor recalculates dynamically based on the current absence data within the defined reference period, ensuring that any changes are immediately reflected and the score remains accurate and up to date.

In this example:

The employee does not have a contract assigned
The system is using the Rolling Year Bradford Factor Calculation setting
- "Todays Date" is 23 March 2026, so the calculation looks 52 weeks back from this date

The employee only has one absence at the moment, from 12th to 18th January 2026, totalling seven days. However, in the absence, only Monday to Friday are ticked as 'Days Usually Worked' (see Fig.9), so for the Bradford Factor calculation, only those five days are taken into consideration.

**Fig.9 - Days Usually Worked - Employee Absence Record**

This means, currently, the Bradford Factor score is calculated as:

One absence instance, squared
Multiplied by five absence days
(1² × 5)
Giving a score of 5:

**Fig.10 - Employees Calculated Bradford Factor Score**

The following absences have now been added in the same reference period:

2nd to 15th February 2026, Monday to Friday ticked as "Days Usually Worked"
- One absence instance
- Ten absence days (7th, 8th, 14th and 15th March 2026 are excluded as they are Saturdays and Sundays)
9th to 11th March 2026, Monday to Friday ticked as "Days Usually Worked" and
12th to 14th March 2026, Monday to Friday ticked as "Days Usually Worked"
- Important: Because the two absences above are continuous despite being separate records, the system recognises them as a single instance of absence, so:
- One absence instance
- Five absence days (14th March 2026 excluded as it is a Saturday)

This means, currently, the Bradford Factor score is calculated as:

Three absence instances, squared
Multiplied by twenty absence days
(3² × 20)
Giving a score of 180:

**Fig.11 - Employees Calculated Bradford Factor Score Continued (additional applicable absences)**

Finally, a final absence is added for "Jury Service" on 20th March 2026, and as shown below, the Bradford Factor score remains at 180 as "Jury Service" is excluded from the Bradford Factor Calculation (Fig.7).

**Fig.12 - Employees Calculated Bradford Factor Score Continued (Non-applicable absences)**

Bradford Factor Export

From 26th March 2026, the Bradford Factor Export will provide a clear, standalone view of employee Bradford scores and the data used to calculate them. It is generated using the most up-to-date information at the point the export is run, rather than a fixed date range or stored values.

As Bradford Factor scores are calculated dynamically, they can change over time as absences are added or updated, configurations are adjusted, or as days pass and older absences fall out of scope. This ensures the export always reflects the current position, giving administrators accurate and transparent insight for reporting and review.

Go to HR > Reports > Exports > Bradford Factor Export
Update the filters if required, using Location and/or Division filters to see specific employees, and Include Terminated Employees if required
- Including Terminated Employees could see longer run times on the export, as it included every employee who still exists within the system
Select Run Export

**Fig.13 - Bradford Factor Export - Selection and Filters**

Once the export has run, it will look like this:

**Fig.14 - Exported Bradford Factor Export**

As mentioned, the data returned is as of the time the export was run, reflecting the scores in the employee's record. This export will detail:

Employee Number - The employee's employee number in the system
Employee Name - The employee's name in the system
Location - The location of the employee at the time of running the export
Division - The division of the employee at the time of running the export
Contract - The applied contract at the time of running the export, returning No Contract if one is not applied
Period Start Date - The period used to calculate Bradford Factor at the time of running the export
Period End Date - The period used to calculate Bradford Factor at the time of running the export
Total Absence Days - The number of absence days in the above period at the time of running the export
Total Absence Instances - The number of instances in the period at the time of running the export
Bradford Factor Score - The calculated Bradford Factor score at the time of running the export

As Bradford Factor scores are dynamic and continually updated over time, depending on internal policies, it could be best practice to run and retain exports at regular intervals. Maintaining a historical record allows organisations to track trends, compare changes over time, and support more informed absence management decisions, rather than relying solely on a single point-in-time view.