How to Avoid Absenteeism in the Workplace?
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Over the years, absenteeism in the workplace has been a problem for many organizations across the globe. Apart from reducing the performance and the morale of the employees, it also has a serious cost impact. As cited by the CDC, absenteeism causes an annual loss of about $225.8 billion, which is $1,685 for every staff member in the US.
In this blog, we’ll define absenteeism in the workplace and give its causes, impacts, and possible solutions for how it can be reduced. With companies all over trying to improve their efficiency at the workplace, it is increasingly important to understand and combat absenteeism.
What is Absenteeism in the Workplace?
Absenteeism in the workplace includes the chronic or repetitive failure of an employee to attend to his or her work with reasons often not given. There are generally accepted instances of being absent, such as being sick, in an emergency, or taking a vacation with permission, but absenteeism without reason affects the normal functioning of the company.
This may concern employees who take days off due to stress and overwork, personal reasons, or health conditions.
Reasons for Workplace Absenteeism
Causes of absenteeism in the workplace are attributed to a number of reasons, both personal and workplace-related. These include:
Health Problems
Most employees miss work for health-related reasons. Chronic diseases, acute illnesses like flu, or even injuries are some physical factors that affect an employee’s ability to show up for work. Research done in 2003 shows approximately 33% of the total absences for subsequent weeks were due to personal illness.
Mental Health
Over the years, there has been a growing sensitivity towards mental health, particularly anxiety, depression and burnout, which has, in turn, contributed towards absenteeism rates. Employees who are fighting these issues might feel symptoms of incapacity and may not make it to work on a regular basis. Employees absent from work primarily due to their psychological health is said to have a negative economic impact on the US economy valued at USD 47.6 billion.
Workplace Stress
Being in an unpleasant working condition is likely to bring about distance with the job, tiredness and emotional trauma, all of which end up increasing absenteeism rates. There is enough evidence suggesting that employees who are overworked, undervalued or unsupported tend to take time off. 28% of employees say that feeling overworked is one of the major causes of absences from work.
Family and Personal Commitments
Employees may also want to take time off for the care of any sick family members, take care of children, or engage in other personal matters that may cause absenteeism.
Poor Work-life Balances
It is evident that if an individual feels that his or her work-life balance is deteriorating, he or she will most often take unplanned time off. Such activities usually arise when the job requirements begin to infringe on the individual’s time and health. It has been seen that depression makes people lose about 200 million productive work days every year, which is worth between $17 billion and $44 billion to their employers.
Impact of Absenteeism in the Workplace: What Does the Data Say?
Absenteeism doesn’t only affect single employees; it is capable of disorganizing teams, departments, the company’s operations, and even its financial performance. As per the CDC’s research, absenteeism in the USA is shown to cost employers a colossal $225.8 billion each year, equivalent to $1,685 per employee, every year as a loss of productivity.
A research by the Europe-based Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions states that businesses in Europe incur health-related absence costs that amount to about 2.5% of their GDP. This amounts to a total cost of 470 billion dollars for the United European Union, which is more than two times the losses experienced by the United States.
Absenteeism is also felt in productivity loss, not only in the person who is absent from work but also at the level of supervision. One international survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) cites that the productivity loss due to planned absence was estimated at 22.6%, whereas that for unplanned absences was much higher at 36.6%.
In addition to these facts, supervisors also suffer from a drop in productivity of 15.7% due to time taken on activities such as trying to control absenteeism, allocating extra work shifts, and even replacing some of the absent workers.
Effects Of Absenteeism In The Workplace
Absenteeism creates a chain reaction that does not affect the isolated employee only but the entire workforce and corporation as well.
On the Employee
Career advancement opportunities for employees are less likely to be attained when they take frequent absences. It also impacts their interpersonal relations with both the managers and the coworkers, thereby affecting their morale negatively. Furthermore, such absences may generate new problems, in particular, the stress caused by returning to active work after a long break with a lot of things to do.
On the Workforce
Many times, an employee’s absence creates situations where his/her coworkers have to undertake more work than they normally would. This automatically leads to overwork, frustration, and unnecessary stress for the other members of the team. In the long run, a growing workload and inequitable distribution of responsibilities within the team will contribute to the decline of team spirit and animosity.
On the Company
Absenteeism poses a problem of time management and affects the organization in its delivery. Business-wise, the expenses may rise very fast from offering overtime compensation for substituting the absent worker, recruiting alternate employees or simply being unable to take up revenue-generating opportunities. Additionally, the workforce’s high rates of absenteeism can lead to bad publicity for the organization, making it difficult to recruit and retain people.
Strategies to Avoid Absenteeism in the Workplace?
Promote a Healthy Work Environment
Having a culture of work that is free of absences encourages people to be constantly healthy, both physically and mentally. Employers must incorporate wellness and health programs and also support the availability of appropriate mental health.
Flexible Work Arrangements
Flexible working options enable employees to balance their work activities with their organization’s interests. This is especially useful for those with family commitments or ill health.
Open Communication Management
Employees should maintain open communication to attempt to resolve issues before they escalate to employee absenteeism. Employees must be encouraged to voice their opinions on work-related or personal stresses and not dread adverse results.
Employee Engagement Programs
Engaged employees will tend not to take unnecessary leave. Low levels of absenteeism tend to be achieved in organizations where there are initiatives that increase employee satisfaction, develop their careers and reinforce positive performance.
Attendance Management Systems
It is suggested that the use of attendance management software can help corporations identify trends of absenteeism and take corrective action before situations deteriorate. Feedback and reviews can also be used to correct this kind of issue when it arises. Companies using software like ProHance to track attendance have registered nearly a 20% drop in the rates of absence.
Also Read: Managing Absences in the Workplace: Strategies for A ProductiveWorkplace
Conclusion
Chronic absenteeism in the workplace brings about many undesirable effects. These include loss of productivity and financial loss, along with a collapse of employee morale and bonding. If companies promote a healthy work environment, offer flexibility, and practice open communication, they will be able to reduce absenteeism from workplaces.
Frequently Asked Question
Q1. What role does employee engagement play in reducing absenteeism?
High levels of employee engagement often lead to better attendance. Engaged employees feel more connected to their work, valued by the organization, and are less likely to take unnecessary time off.
Q2. Are there any legal considerations when addressing absenteeism?
Yes, employers should be mindful of legal requirements related to sick leave, personal leave, and workplace accommodations under labor laws. It’s essential to address absenteeism fairly and within legal boundaries to avoid potential discrimination claims.
