How to manage & reduce workplace absenteeism: 5 useful tips

What is Employee Absenteeism?

Absenteeism in the workplace covers any kind of absence from work, whether it’s approved or not. This covers holidays, illness,tardiness and even unexplained absences from work.

It falls into two categories:

• Planned Absenteeism: Long-term absences, annual leave and other time paid off, vacation leave, staff/workforce development leave, government service leave, routine and other planned medical treatment.

• Unplanned Absenteeism: Unplanned/emergency absences, short-term absences (not otherwise planned).

Now we know what it is, let’s assess how costly high absenteeism rates are for your business:

The cost of UK absenteeism

According to CIPD,  UK employers can expect to pay at least £500 per member of staff annually. This comes as no surprise! According to the Office for National Statistics, “137 million working days were lost because of sickness or injury in the UK.” This is the equivalent of 4.3 days per worker. For mental health-related absences alone, businesses in the UK can expect to pay up to £8.4 billion a year.

The Department of Public Expenditure’s research on 250,000 workers in Ireland revealed that each full-time Civil Service employee took used 10.2 working days for absences. This equates to roughly €569.64 per year… per employee.

There are also other consequential costs of employee absenteeism that are not financial, but still affect profitability:

• Low employee morale.

• Management frustration.

• Staff disengagement.

• Negative customer feedback.

• More employee overtime and workload.

• Lack of cultural alignment.

What causes absenteeism in the workplace?

There are many factors that can contribute to employee absenteeism. Some may be out of your control - family illness or loss, accidents and emergencies, and other unforeseeable events. These kinds of absences are inevitable and unavoidable.

There are sources of absenteeism you can support your team to reduce. For example, absences due to stress or other manageable mental health issues, avoidable injury or strain, and extended time off with illness due to unhealthy lifestyle choices or overworking.

Lastly, there are causes of absenteeism that are linked directly to your workplace. For example, a 2022 CIPD report found that nearly half of those surveyed had needed to take time off work after facing discrimination.

Dealing with absenteeism in the workplace

You are never going to completely eradicate absenteeism. You can support individuals within your organisation who have higher levels of absenteeism. This may be more effective than coming down on them. We believe there is a three-step process to dealing with absenteeism.

Step 1. Communicate with your team member
You need to explain your concerns about their absences, the impact that this is having on the wider team and any potential consequences of continued absence. Ideally this will be done early and in a non-confrontational manner.

Step 2. Understand their side of the story
Getting to the bottom of why these absences are occurring is really important. There may well be something you can do to support your team member, or resources they can draw on. Signposting options early should minimise the impact on both the individual and the wider organisation.

Step 3. Create a roadmap
It’s not always possible to solve or mitigate absences, but where possible accommodations should be laid out. For example, if an individual is likely to run out of paid medical leave this should also be added to any plans moving forward. It’s also useful to schedule further check-ins at this stage.

5 ideas to help reduce absenteeism in the workplace

It’s evident that absenteeism is both prevalent and costly in today’s working climate. It’s important to focus on the best approaches to combat short-term and long-term absences immediately. This will free up time for you to focus on strategy and innovation.

Let’s examine some effective prevention strategies:

1. Implement flexible working & encourage time off

Now I know it may seem counter-intuitive to encourage people to be out of the office if you want to reduce absences but trust me it’s not! Flexible working is no longer considered a luxury… it’s a necessity. The same goes for annual leave.  By promoting flexibility and encouraging everyone to use all their holidays you will reduce stress and burnout and promote a healthier work-life balance. Everyone will enjoy their work more. They will have a work-life blend where work and “play” complement each other and they can create schedules that work for them. Whilst they may be in the office less, they will certainly still be working and there will be fewer absences due to sickness, stress or fake illness!

2. Create a pleasant working environment

A carefully designed office will attract and retain staff, improve efficiency through productivity and lower absenteeism rates. A good starting point is creating an ergonomic work environment that will relieve stress, improve posture and increase performance. Ergonomic work environments decrease musculoskeletal health issues that can be catalysts for poor health. Ultimately this leads to absenteeism. When you add in proper lighting, adjustable desks and ergonomic workstations – your staff are sure to appreciate the reduced stress on their eyes and other body parts. All amenities, furnishings and furniture should encourage relaxation and facilitate collaboration and productivity.

It’s important to create an environment that aligns with the work you do. For example, if you work in the health business, then ensure you provide healthy food and you encourage your people to exercise. Failure to do this can result in you compromising your brand and sending mixed messages.

3. Demonstrate that you care:

People will inevitably have life issues that prevent them from attending work. You can show support by implementing Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs) that offer referral services. The idea is to help out workers with emotional, psychological and physical needs. EAPs are an effective way to communicate to employees that their health is paramount.

When done effectively, EAPs are highly beneficial. You will create a healthier and happier workforce.  Your business will have an effective resource for dealing with complex absences. You will retain employees who may have a nonwork-related issue that can be resolved or managed with effective intervention. All of which will noticeably improve your absenteeism rates and create a healthier and happier company.

4. Communicate regularly

We all have frustrations from time to time. Failure to put an effective system in place to help you understand and remedy these concerns can result in a loss of productivity. The aftermath is an increase in absenteeism. To effectively communicate with your team, you can implement a system so everyone can contact you and create an open dialogue.

You need to understand why the individuals within your organisation are absent from work. It may be that your team needs easier access to childcare - so providing a creche could help. It could be that adding extra hand sanitiser stations could minimise the spread of illness. It could be that you have a problem with a toxic team member that is causing stress within a particular department. By having open, anonymous, two-way communication, you will be able to support your team in the ways they need.

5. Live your values

It’s so important to lead by example. If you want your people to put in the effort and put in a shift either at the office or at the comfort of their home then you must do the same. Your behaviours will influence everyone else and will be replicated throughout the company. So make sure you are living your company values and working the right way for your business.

The same goes for taking time off and making healthy choices. If you come into work and battle through illness, making the resulting time off longer (and potentially taking other teammates down with you), then that behaviour may permeate throughout your organisation. If you prioritise cycling to work or taking time off with your kids for your mental health this will also encourage your team to do the same. Improving workplace culture can have a profound impact on absenteeism rates.

You Can't afford to Ignore Absenteeism

You can have the best business model and the most innovative product – but you won’t be a success if you’re staff don’t show up… Managing absenteeism highlights that you run a professional business with high standards of employee performance. This encompasses employee attendance. The cost of employee absences far outweigh the costs of the preventive measures.