It seems that absenteeism is causing a lot of stress for many of us – not only because employees who are consistently absent or late to work cause headaches, but they also impact on our bottom line!
Here are our top 5 tips for reducing absenteeism at your place:
1. Set standards of attendance
Start right at the start –your induction and your leave policy should
outline what you expect if they are going to be late or are not able to
get to work. For example employees should;
- tell their manager they will be absent;
- phone their manager within a certain time-frame to advise why they are unable to make it to work, the nature of their illness and when they expect to return;
- know that they will be contacted if you haven’t heard from them about why they are absent; and
- provide certain evidence that they
are unfit for work i.e. a medical certificate or statutory declaration,
in a certain way and within a certain time-frame.
Collect information on patterns of absence, regardless of how many employees you have. Only with these statistics are you going to know if you have an issue in your workplace. Keeping an eye on these trends can assist you to:
- identify if you have a problem with absence at your workplace;
- determine what type of absence usually occurs in your workplace i.e. is it mainly Monday morning ’sickies’ or cases of longer-term sickness?; and
- highlight patterns in absence levels. For example, are absence levels higher in one particular team or at a specific time of year?
For longer term absences, a return to work interview allows you to determine whether the employee is able to return to their duties and if modifications to their duties are required. It also assists you to determine if there is enough reason for disciplinary action. The focus on their absence gives notice to the employee that it hasn’t been noticed. Of course this will depend on the employee’s absence record, and any patterns.
4. Promote opportunities for flexible work
We know it is a legislated requirement, but why not be a trail blazer
and help employees achieve a balance between their work, family and
lifestyle commitments? There are lots of statistics that show that
work-life balance reduces absenteeism. Just looking at your workplace
and the roles differently might unearth a few opportunities to work
flexibly that you didn’t know existed.
Research suggests our people spend only 20%, or one day each week, doing tasks for which they have a genuine aptitude. Of course they are busy all the time. You can add real value and unearth strategies to engage and fulfil your staff by identifying roadblocks and helping remove them. In your informal discussions ask, "How can I help make your job more fulfilling, engaging and productive?"
These conversations with your people have economic benefits. All investments yield a return. How can you get your staff to work?
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