“The beatings will stop once morale improves”. Exhortations such as this will not improve the situation. First, I suggest you gather the facts. Plot the rise in absenteeism. Is absenteeism seasonal, or exhibit some other kind of variation? If so, there may be no need to be overly concerned. Was there a sudden rise in absenteeism? If so, can this be correlated with some other event – a popular manager leaving, layoffs in the industry, etc?
What sections or departments are exhibiting the highest absenteeism rates, or the steepest increase in rates? It would be unusual to see all sections of the company increase in absenteeism at the same rate at the same time. If so, look for external factors. If there are varying rates, which sections are exhibiting unusual increases, and then concentrate on those. Applying a blanket cure to the whole company when only one part of it needs it will only waste resources and possibly demotivate others.
I hope you are getting the picture. First get the facts. The next phase is the diagnosis. In looking for causes, you have a number of options. For an overall and consistent increase in absenteeism across the company, analyze external, environmental and company-wide factors.
For localized increases, use employee surveys and focus groups with managers and employees (run separately). An important source of information is the individual employee. For those employees exhibiting high levels of absenteeism, get their manager to conduct a casual one-on-one interview to uncover the real reasons for leave. If there are low levels of trust between managers and employees, these interviews could be conducted by HR staff.
Most importantly, don’t assume that the high level of absenteeism is the employees fault. There may be a new production machine, for example, that is giving off toxic fumes. Or there may be a new manager expert in bullying employees.
Once you have completed an accurate diagnosis, then and only then, design and roll out a mitigation plan. And make sure that what is implemented will actually cure the problem.
Vicki Heath
Human Resources Software and Resources
http://www.businessperform.com