It's not surprising that we have no motivation or engagement when we're constantly told of the impending credit crunch and the instability of the job market. To be fair it's a wonder any of us have made it to our desks at all this year!

Whatever it is, though, that makes us or our colleagues not want to be at work, we need to think about what we can do to make a difference.

Author: Paul Roberts, healthcare consultant, IHC

Topic: Absenteeism

OVERVIEW

Absence is a major issue for many UK organisations, yet less than half monitor the cost of absence to their business (CIPD, July 2007). On average the cost of absence is £659 per employee per year and in addition to this the indirect cost of absenteeism on the organisation is significant, affecting productivity levels and knowledge management and putting customer service, morale and corporate reputations at risk.

Managing absence is about starting with the little things. Are you that boss that grunts at employees? Are there issues you need to resolve that by addressing will make a massive, positive impact on your team? Or can you sit down with team members to talk about problems they may be having with a client - perhaps a regular reporting meeting or deadline - that causes them to take regular absences? Unchecked absence will cost you and your team a fortune.

WHEN TO USE THIS GUIDE

• When you have identified absenteeism as a key or emerging issue for your team or your organisation and you want to minimise its impact.

• When you need advice on how to manage a member of staff who is persistently absent.

• When you are keen to implement an absence management policy prior to absenteeism becoming a major issue for your business.

• When you recognise the negative impact of one employee’s absence on other members of the team and you need to minimise their stress and manage their increased workload.

10-STEP ACTION PLAN
 
1. Adopt a proactive approach to absence

A preventative approach to absence management begins with promoting employee wellness throughout the business and taking positive steps to eliminate the common causes of absence before they impact on the workplace.

2. Get a clear picture of who is absent and when

Can you spot a pattern of people or the days they are absent? Some businesses choose to buy costly software programmes to track illness and absence, but although these produce absence data, they do not provide solutions – you need to do this.

3. Put a clear absence policy in place

An absence policy should be easy to understand and not open to varying interpretations. It should outline details, for example, when employees are entitled to be absent, at what time they should inform their line manager they are absent and where they can go for support to get back to work and to prevent or reduce further time out of the workplace.

4. Integrate employee support services

Ensure the company’s health and wellbeing services (especially if they are managed by a range of departments and individuals) do not overlap, duplicate or leave gaps in policies or services. Make sure every department knows about the services that have been purchased by other departments.

5. Tackle absence from the first day

Check the facts surrounding the absence and address any immediate or short-term workload issues to ensure business continuity. Absent employees should be made aware of the services and support that is available to them (and, where appropriate, their families), such as Employee Assistance Programmes or occupational health services.

6. Support line managers to manage the problem

The line managers of absent employees should be supported too and should be trained to tackle any occurrence of absenteeism sensitively and within the requirements of workplace law (including the Disability Discrimination Act, Medical Records Act, Data Protection Act) and company policy.

7. Absence management is a team effort

Managing absence is not the sole responsibility of one person. By encouraging all relevant parties to develop a solution for each individual case of absence will relieve the burden on one person and will also highlight to the whole business that tackling absenteeism is a normal and regular part of work, not a ‘flash-in-the-pan’ project that can soon be forgotten.

8. Encourage the team to support absent colleagues

Employees who have been absent need to feel that their colleagues are supportive and understanding of them and their situation, not resentful of their time off work. Team members should be encouraged to greet returners with a welcoming atmosphere and, where possible, remove any backlog of work, emails or post.

9. Talk about your experiences

Working with someone who has had experience of the pitfalls of absence can help. No two situations are the same but missing some of the obvious pitfalls can realise performance gains faster.

10. Don’t rush into outsourcing your problem

Outsourcing absence management is an option that requires careful consideration. Making quick gains is relatively easy but maintaining a sustained improvement is tough and few suppliers can show real sustainability. You should also consider if you want employees to ring an outsourced call centre rather than another employee when they are absent. Is this the ‘right’ message that you want to give out?

EXPECTED OUTCOMES | RESULTS 

• You can see a noticeable and / or measurable reduction in absenteeism within your team or organisation.

• Your line managers and employees are aware of and adhere to the company’s absence management policy.

• Individuals recognise the company’s commitment to managing the issues that contribute to absence, including stress, and can proactively seek assistance, should the need arise.

ABOUT IHC

IHC is a leader in employee wellbeing and specialises in medical and health insurance broking. IHC advises clients on strategy, design, delivery and communication of health and wellbeing programmes.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

IHC
Contact: Paul Roberts
T: 020 7353 4099
E: proberts@ihc.co.uk
www.ihc.co.uk