Tackling Unauthorized Absences: How Can We Reduce Store-Level Absenteeism?

Hi All, In our company, we face significant problems with absenteeism issues at the store level. Staff members disappear from the store without informing their superiors.

Case of Unauthorized Leave by Store Manager

Recently, we had a case where a Store Manager went on leave without prior information. As a Store Manager, she has more responsibility to run the store. At the same time, two of her trained staff members had gone on leave, having applied for it one month prior. She is not supposed to take leave during her staff's absence. Her family member called the GM of operations and informed them that she was admitted to the hospital due to food poisoning and would take 2-3 days to return to duty.

After two days, I called her to check on her health. She replied that it would take more days, which seemed like an excuse. On top of that, she kept her mobile switched off. Then, after two more days, she called to inform us she would resume duty on Monday. Before resuming duty, we called her to the office with medical and hospital bills to prove her cause of admission, but she didn't turn up for the meeting.

Repeated Incidents and Company Challenges

She has done this a second time. She is good at cleaning and has expertise, which is why we gave her the flexibility of remaining absent without informing us the first time. Now, the situation is such that she has taken undue advantage of the company. We don't have someone to replace her. She perceives that if she takes such unauthorized leave, the company will keep her back at work.

Most of the staff lie and give excuses; they don't have the fear of losing their jobs. For these people, they don't understand the consequences of a warning letter issued to them. They don't even bother if we deduct their salary for the days they remain absent.

Please suggest some ideas on how to handle such unauthorized absences. What measures can we introduce to reduce absenteeism issues?

Regards,

Please do the following:

1. Start giving attendance bonuses.
2. Implement monthly prizes for maximum attendance.
3. Begin deducting half-day leave or salary for unauthorized absences.
4. Call SM and counsel her that her role comes with accountability and responsibility, and issue her a warning.
5. Maintain a pool of staff to replace absentees on a day-to-day basis to ensure work is not disrupted.

Regards,
Nitu

Dear Mr. Milan Kamble,

Would it be possible for you to give me one solid reason for your staff developing such an attitude? Not only have your employees developed such an attitude, but even your store manager has as well. Perhaps someone has given them a free hand and has been ignoring their faults, which has developed into an attitude.

You need to delve into the factors supporting such behavior and investigate why it is happening. Also, study the system and work culture being promoted by your organization.

I hope there is an employee who is accountable and responsible for monitoring time and attendance while reporting about such absenteeism in-time to initiate appropriate action without further delay.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

With profound regards,

1. Start giving attendance bonuses.
2. Deduct the amount for late coming and being absent without informing.
3. Issue a warning letter to the employee if he/she does not pick up the call or respond within 1 hour.
4. Clearly communicate to them that this type of repetitive behavior will have an adverse effect on their appraisals, potentially leading to non-promotion, demotion, and no salary review.
5. Leave requests should be approved at least 15 days prior. In case of an emergency, inform the reporting boss for approval.
6. Circulate this notice every week, and individuals breaking the rules should be highlighted on the notice board (stating that an amount has been deducted or a memo has been issued to Mr. A for a specific reason).

Implementing these changes will help bring things back on track, as I have successfully applied the same strategy in my company, resulting in a reduction of such instances of behavior.

Regards,
Harsha

If management or promoters are genuinely interested in solving this issue, they need to truly identify the reasons for this indiscipline. From a straightforward reading of the facts, it seems there is an incompetent person at the top whose irresponsible behavior or policies are contributing to this problem. Either this individual should change their behavior or be replaced; this change will lead to automatic improvements.