Struggling with Unplanned Employee Leaves? Here’s How to Tackle the Issue Together

Hi, can anyone please suggest how to prevent employees from taking unplanned leaves?

Implement Clear Leave Policies and Procedures

To address the issue of employees taking unplanned leaves, it is essential to implement clear leave policies and procedures. Clearly communicate the company's expectations regarding attendance and adherence to the leave policy.

Incentives and Penalties

Provide incentives for good attendance and consider implementing penalties for excessive unplanned absences.

Encourage Open Communication

Additionally, encourage open communication between employees and management to address any underlying issues that may be contributing to frequent unplanned leaves.

Monitor and Track Attendance

Regularly monitor and track attendance to identify patterns and address them proactively. By taking these steps, you can effectively reduce the instances of unplanned leaves among your employees.

Dear Zaheer09khan, Following are the suggestions:

1. Formulate a leave policy with leave rules and regulations, leave application form, etc.
2. Ensure it is known to all employees.
3. Post a notice or circular advising employees to adhere to the leave rules and regulations.
4. Issue an advisory memo initially to those who are not following the leave rules and regulations.
5. Issue warning letters if there is no improvement.
6. Issue a charge sheet in certain cases. Conduct an enquiry and take appropriate disciplinary action.
7. Be firm and fair in implementing leave rules and regulations and also in taking disciplinary action.

In addition to what Mr. Keshav Ji said, you can also consider the following suggestions:

1. Impress upon the employees through the leave policy that leave is not a matter of right and that everyone shall obtain prior sanction of leave, failing which the management may consider the absence as unauthorized.

2. Advise the employees to submit their leave plans on the eve of festive occasions well in advance to avoid the risk of rejection.

3. Be strict with some disciplinary action against one or two erring employees who persist in violation, which sends a message to others.

4. You may consider laying down conditions that casual leave cannot be availed in conjunction with holidays to discourage the tendency of many employees going on leave at the same time, crippling the daily function of the office.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

Dear Zaheer,

Please provide us with a brief overview of your company's leave policy. If you work for a mid-sized company, there must be an existing leave policy in place that employees are expected to adhere to. If the policy includes consequences for unauthorized absences, you can implement those measures. On the other hand, if you work for a small company where employees are allowed only a limited number of leaves per month without further categorization into CL/SL/EL, you will need to consider alternative strategies. Kindly elaborate on the specifics of your leave policy, such as the number of leaves permitted per employee in a month.

Thank you.

Other senior members have given valuable comments. Now let me say something from the organization's culture point of view.

When employees go on unplanned leave, it only goes on to show their priorities. They give priority to their affairs rather than the company's. We need to fix this mindset.

Understanding Employee Priorities

Why are employees so nonchalant about the company's requirements? How does management deal with them? Is the treatment fair and square? Are the systems and processes well-defined? If yes, are they implemented properly? How is the remuneration? Is it as per market standards? Is it difficult for your company to find the right people? Have your employees understood this, hence risking playing truant?

Management and Interpersonal Environment

How do managers deal with the staff? What is the interpersonal environment like? What unique initiatives have you taken to develop employees' attachment to the company?

I recommend you gather feedback from employees to improve the company's culture. For this, of course, your leadership may need to change the leadership style. Obtain this feedback only if the leadership is ready to change its behavior. To conduct various organization surveys, you may seek help from humanlinks.com.

Thanks,

Dinesh V Divekar