Reducing the High Cost of Absenteeism

Employers pay a high price for absenteeism, often more than they may realize, in terms of both financial and production losses and employee morale. Managers may view the tasks of finding a substitute employee as a short-term inconvenience; however, absenteeism frequently has more serious long-term effects. Employers can, nevertheless, ensure that employees report in regularly and remain on the job.

Before employers can determine the best way to combat absenteeism, they must identify the organizational and individual factors that contribute to the problem. Among the most common potential problem areas employers need to explore are the following:

* Job satisfaction: Employees who like their job are more likely to come to work than those who find work unstimulating.

* Work attitude: Some employees come to work no matter how sick they feel, while others call in sick no matter how well they feel.

* Company culture: If management's attitude is lax and absenteeism is accepted as a normal practice, the organization's culture may have to be changed before attendance can be improved.

* Excessive rates of sick leave: As some insurance companies are now doing, employers need to monitor sick leave rates and reward employees who use fewer sick leaves.

Once you know the cause of absenteeism in your organization, it will become easy for you to correct, or minimize, the problem. But you have got to do your homework.

Remember: When you maximize your potential, everyone wins. When you don't, we all lose.

© Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW

PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in ezines, newsletters, and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required. Mail to: eagibbs@ureach.com.

Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW, Management Consultant and Trainer, conducts seminars, lectures, and writes articles on his theme: "... helping you maximize your potential." He offers management and marketing resources at http://www.maximizingyourpotential.blogspot.c om.

---

Five Ways to Influence Change in Others

Because of my work as a consultant, trainer and coach... Read More

Creativity and Innovation Management - Core Competencies and Competitive Advantage

Following is a brief definition of core competencies and competitive... Read More

He Hate Me: Turning Their Bad Attitude Into Your Great Results

"He Hate Me" was the nickname of Rod Smart, a... Read More

Performance Reviews That Actually Improve Performance

Employee performance reviews are one of the most dreaded tasks... Read More

Hire The Person, Not The Resume

"? [get] the right people on the bus, the right... Read More

Is Your Management Style Assisting or Hurting Your Business?

Many times business owners can have significant differences in management... Read More

Innovation Management ? Producing Great Products, Motivation

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Senior Management and Directional Change

This article relates to the Senior/Top Level management of an... Read More

Ten Business Reasons Why Asking for Help Works

In fact, bringing your people - any of them -... Read More

What Makes a Crisis a Crisis?

If you're old enough and were living in America about... Read More

Involving People Gave Us the Improvements We Needed

We had a problem with handling materials in a production... Read More

It?s Not All About Cheese: The Missing Component in Employee Development (Part 2)

In part one of this article I told you about... Read More

Why I always Keep my Promises

Integrity is very important to me, and I try hard... Read More

CRM ...The Emperors New Clothes

The story of the emperor's new clothes is a fairy... Read More

Uncovering the Secrets to Effective Performance Management

In many ways there are no secrets to implementing effective... Read More

Management to the Vision-Contribution and the Role of Compliance

As a manager our role is to:1. Establish the vision,... Read More

Planning a Productive Retreat

What value is there in leadership or team-building retreats? Just... Read More

Management Team Section of Business Plans

Writing an award winning business plan is a great skill,... Read More

Have You Fixed the Broken Window?

Left alone it doesn't take long for a building with... Read More

Rethinking the CEO-Chairman Split

Traditionally, in American businesses, the same person occupies the role... Read More

Let the Professionals Help You Out - Outsource

As your website grows in terms of attracting more footfalls,... Read More

Bye-Bye Boring Meetings! Make Yours Remarkable!

It's the middle of the night. You've woken up with... Read More

10 Resolutions For The New Year!!

Each year many people create a list of resolutions designed... Read More

Do You Need a Personal Assistant?

It's great to be multi-skilled?be able to type your own... Read More

Is Your Brain Getting the Memory Full Message? 5 Ways to Free Up Room on Your Brains Hard Drive

Lynn was tapped to head up the project team for... Read More

Beyond Management Coaching: When Things Are Getting Out of Control

Leaders and Managers often ask us, 'What do you do... Read More

Leadership Style: What Makes A Good Boss?

In today's competitive environment, companies realize that a good boss... Read More

Are You At The Mercy Of Computer Geeks?

Many business owners are sabotaging their business without even realizing... Read More

Performance Expectations - 5 Tips and 5 Questions

People want to understand their role - they want to... Read More

Write Winning Proposals For Venture Capitalists

You need to secure money for your project. You visit... Read More

Lateral Thinking, Logical Thinking, Applied Creativity

Certain processes enhance creative output and others enhance innovative output.... Read More

When Business Becomes A Battlefield

"We have to be careful it's like a minefield out... Read More

6 Shared Factors of Successful Executives

These factors where determined by interviews with and books from... Read More