Four Management Techniques that can Improve Absenteeism

When are your workers absent from the office? Sometimes, their absences could be planned well in advance; for example, because they have booked a getaway or scheduled an appointment with their doctor. Sometimes, though, workers can disappear unexpectedly, perhaps due to stress or illness. Whatever the reasons for employee absenteeism, it could be blighting your workplace - for example, because your team can't perform to its optimum level, or remaining employees are weighed down by having to take on extra work. Ultimately, your firm's long-term success could be at stake. However, while effectively tackling the issue of absenteeism can be tricky, it isn't impossible. Here are some techniques that could tip the odds in your favour. Make sure you're offering enough paid days offr How many days off are your workers entitled to on a paid basis? Ironic though it may initially sound, increasing the number of those days could, in the long run, help to reduce absenteeism, as it could prevent burnout from arising, HubSpot implies. On the subject of HubSpot, that particular company even offers unlimited days off - and, while you might consider it a little extreme to follow suit, rest assured that the system probably won't be abused if you do introduce it. After all, it could lead your workers to appreciate their jobs more! Inject extra flexibility into working hoursr Do you find that your workplace morale - and, as a result, productivity levels - tend to peak at particular times of the day? That could be the case for your employees, too - in which case, you could capitalise by giving them more freedom to decide when exactly they work. Perhaps some of them might favour arriving relatively late in the morning or leaving early in the afte oon. However precisely the working hours are juggled, you could be pleasantly surprised by how much you benefit from letting employees work on their own terms. Allow employees to work remotely, toor Don't assume that, just because your workers aren't in the office in person, they aren't there in spirit. Well, it would be fair not to make that assumption if you gave these workers the option of working remotely, anyway. One good reason why is that, when employees work from home, they could look after their ill offspring, meet up with the plumber or attend a medical appointment - all tasks which could have motivated them to book an entire day off work instead. Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson has commented, as quoted by Forbes: "I'm a great believe in people working from home. I encourage our staff if they want to work from home." Implement a wellness programmer Judging from a survey of roughly 900 employers, organisations introducing wellness initiatives could significantly reduce the number of unplanned absences among workforces as a result. This shouldn't surprise when you consider that an employee assistance programme from LifeWorks, for example, could reduce stress that, if left untreated, has the potential to eventually cause such health issues as heart disease and depression.