ABSENTEEISM IN THE WORKPLACE

The question can be asked - What is absenteeism?  Is it only when the employee is not at work or does it go further?

The very basis of the employment contract is that the employee has to: (a) come to work, and (b) be on time in order to perform the duties which he/she has been employed to do, and he/she must remain at the workstation for the contracted number of hours per day in order to perform the requisite duties.

If the employee does not do that, he/she cannot fulfill his/her contractual obligations, and is therefore in breach of contract.

Absenteeism problems can range from employees not calling in or not showing up for their shifts to requesting extra time off and establishing patterns of abuse, it also includes:

Poor Time Keeping eg arriving late, leaving early, extended smoke, toilet, lunch or tea breaks - If the employee is not at work or at the workstation when scheduled to be, he/she is considered to be absent.

Attending to private business during working hours - the employee is at work, but is not attending to his duties in terms of the employment contract and is therefore absent.

Feigned illness - taking sick leave when well.

Undue length of time in fetching or carrying tools, equipment, etc.

Other unexplained absencens from the workplace or from the premises.

WHAT CAN AN EMPLOYER DO TO MANAGE ABSENTEEISM?

A key to curbing abuse is to be aware of the warning signs and to have an absence policy in place that clearly sets forth which absences are allowed, and what behaviour will subject the employee to discipline. The following is a guideline in steps to follow:

1. Implement Company Policy, Rules and Regulations

A company's rules and policy should be clearly written and disseminated to all employees. In addition, the employer should make sure to train all supervisors and managers to ensure that the policy is being fairly applied.  It's a good idea to spot check attendance issues in every department to make sure that company rules are being fairly imposed.

2. Lookout for the following warning signs:

• Deteriorating job performance
• Increased incidences of poor timekeeping
• Heightened conflict with a manager or colleague
• Low morale
• Lack of motivation
• Personal problems
• Ill Health

3. Identiy Patterns of absenteeism

Very often absenteeism follows a pattern (e.g. an employee who's regularly absent of a Friday or Monday, not necessarily every Friday and every Monday, but when he/she is absent it is on a Friday or a Monday, payday or the day after payday.) Most of the times these are deliberate and willful absenteeism - the employee does not come to work because he just feels like a day off - no other reason.

Willful and deliberate absence is a very serious offence because the employee has deliberately and willfully chosen to ignore his/her contractual obligation and duty to present himself for work, and is therefore in breadh of his contract.  This type of absenteeism calls for severe discipline - Obviously, proper disciplinary procedures must be followed.

4. Take immediate action

Take action early.  If you become aware an employee is taking what appears to be a great deal of time off, examine his record and look for:

a) A pattern e.g. absent on weekends, before and after weekends, payday, 1 day a month or on a regular basis.

b) Call for a counceling meeting with the employee with regards to his absence and cover the following in the meeting:

• Show the employee his sick leave record;
• Establish the reasons why he's been absent;
• Put the employee on sick leave terms e.g. you'll require a doctor's note for every absence, even if it's because his child is ill, he must bring a doctor's note;
• Explain to the employee what will happen if he's sick leave is exhausted and he then becomes ill or has an accident - no sick leave = no pay.  He must understand the consequences of taking his sick leave for arbitrary reasons;
• Recap attendance/leave policies and procedures, in particular, that the employer must be notified on the first day of absence about his absence and expected return date to work;
• Record the meeting and place a copy on his/her file.

5. Monitor the employee

• Monitor the employee to see if the corrective action has been successful;
• Ensure employee gives proof for every absence;
• If improvement shown - give positive feedback to employee.

6. Institute disciplinary action

If no improvement shown and the employee is absent again or not following correct procedures, start implementing disciplinary action e.g. written warning, final warning and ultimately dismissal.

7. Keep Records

The record keeping is vital in the event that the employee becomes a habitual absentee, and you need to dismiss at some future stage.  Keep will-maintained records to easily identify trends and patterns.  It is essential to keep leave records accurate and current.  Make sure every employee completes his leave form.  It will be very difficult for you to takcle the problem of absenteeism if you don't have the evidence to back up your case!

10 TRICKS EMPLOYEES PLAY WHEN IT COMES TO ABSENTEEISM

1. The Traditional Healer's note

Often employees will claim they went to a traditional healer and can't give you a doctor's note.  According to the BCEA, this is not a valid sick note, thus the employee does not qualify for sick leave.

  2. Cultural Ceremonies

These are numerous and can involve lengthy time off.  However, most of them are planned in advance and the employee must apply for annual or unpaid leave in advance.  Don't accept this as an excuse.

3. "I went to the clinic, but they were too busty to give me a note"

Clinic notes technically are not valid medical certificates, however management discretion to be applied since quite a few conditions are treated via clinics e.g. diabetes, tuberculoses, etc., but don't accept "they were too busy to issue a note" as an excuse.

4. " I went to the clinic for my medication and had to wait all day"

It might be a valid reason, however is not acceptable.  Assist the employee to source a clinic closer to work.

5. "I asked my brother to phone you, but he didn't"

The onus is on the employee to contact his place of work himself. The only time this excuse might be valid is when the employee is unconscious or really too ill, then a relative must contact you as soon as possible.

6. "I didn't have airtime, did not know the number, didn't have money"

Make sure your subordinates know how to contact you.  If they genuinely don't have money they can send you a "please call me"

7. "I was so sick / so shocked, I forgot to call"

You can maybe accept this for the 1st day, but not thereafter.

8. "My transport did not arrive, was late, broke down"

Ask for proof of the circumstances.  It is the employee's duty to ensure he get to work, not yours.

9. "I had to collect my driver's licence, passport, ID, etc. It was too late to come to work when I was finished"

This must be planned for in advance and leave applied for in advance.

10. "My child got sick during the night and I had to take him to the doctor"

Again, the employee must have phoned you before the start of his / her shift and informed you of his / her circumstances.  If not, it is considered a breach of procedure and you should ask for proof.

As a last word, remember, a real and valid acceptable excuse does not mean that the absence is acceptable.  Although you may be sympathetic to the circumstances and may even try to assist in some way, the ultimate responsibility to get to work on time rests wih the employee.  It is his / her problem - not yours.  If the employee cannot carry out this contractual obligation - e.g. to be at work on time, then he / she may be in line to become an ex-employee!

Liesl Dobson

Disclaimer: The material contained in this article is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.  Neither the autor nor the publsiher accepts responsibility for any loss or damage that may arise from reliance on information contained herein.