Page 10 - NL NOV 2019.indd

10 November 2019
FRONTLINE Prac cal Informa on for Managers & Supervisors
©2019, No. 371

Managing Employee Absenteeism

Absenteeism in the workplace is a 2. Give Employees an
problem all managers encounter, Opportunity to Explain
and although absences are o en Themselves
due to legi mate reasons, they can The fi rst thing you can do is
also very easily get out of control give employees an opportunity
if they’re not managed carefully. to explain themselves. When
Persistent unexcused absenteeism, they return to work, have a
par cularly when it involves one-on-one discussion about
just a few individuals, not only their absence and express your
lowers produc vity and increases concern. This is not a disciplinary
everyone else’s workload, but it can precipitate a nega ve discussion, but more of a fact-fi nding mission. Your goal
atmosphere in the workplace. Swi a en on is necessary. is to understand what’s happening and try to solve the
issue. For example, if stress is a factor, then you may
KNOW THE PROBLEMS need to discuss strategies that can help, such as shi ing
workloads, reducing responsibili es, etc.
Absenteeism and tardy employees can have a
detrimental eff ect on your department and the whole Very o en, employees are pleased that they have been
organiza on in mul ple ways: given an opportunity to air their problems or grievances.

V Resentment may grow among coworkers who are But be warned, you may learn things that you don’t want
asked to step in to pick up the slack for an absent to hear, par cularly if it turns out that your management
employee. As a result, morale plummets as our style is the problem. Try to remain objec ve during the
workers begin to wonder why they show up and discussion and use it as a pla orm to change things.
work hard when others don’t have to.
3. Put a Performance Improvement Plan in Place
V Over me is o en needed to make up for work the If the tac c above doesn’t work, then you need to put
absent employees should have been doing. a performance review plan in place that sets specifi c
V Customer service will likely be hurt when phones go goals for improvement, a endance being one of them.
unanswered or there aren’t enough people on hand Put the plan in wri ng and clearly explain the meframe
to adequately meet customer needs. of the plan and the consequences of not fulfi lling its
requirements.
V Employees with good a endance records may
start coming in late or take days off in reac on to 4. Develop and Communicate a Clear Leave / Sick Leave
excessive absenteeism and lateness on the part Policy
of their coworkers. The snowball eff ect of such a A wri en policy won’t stop absenteeism, but it will help
situa on can have a serious nega ve impact on the you deal with it more eff ec vely. It will also demonstrate
produc on and work product of your department. to all employees that you don’t tolerate absenteeism.
Absences occur for many reasons – burnout, stress, low Use the document to clearly explain paid and unpaid
morale, job hun ng, etc. – and need to be addressed leave policies and the consequences of unexcused
quickly. The following ps may help: absences. If you have a company newsle er or intranet,
use these to promote your policy.
1. Is the Absence for Genuine Reasons?
Ever wondered if there was a good reason behind that call Note that the law doesn’t require you to provide general
you got from an absent employee excusing himself from leave benefi ts, but it does require employers to provide
work for the day? O en there is a genuine reason and your leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA),
gut ins nct can guide you on this one. However, if you are various sick leave ordinances and other state laws –
no cing an excessive pa ern and fi nding it hard to take keep an eye on local laws before taking any tangible
your employee’s word for it, then it’s me to take ac on. employment ac ons.
If an employee is simply not bothering to show up or give
you advance no ce, then an interven on is essen al. Start See below for a sample repor ng for work/absenteeism
ac vely documen ng tardiness and absences. policy.

Timber Products Manufacturers Associa on