Absenteeism Challenges in a Diverse Workforce: How Can HR Tackle This Issue?

Hi, my second topic of discussion today is regarding absenteeism among workers. FYI, my company employs workers from various countries such as Vietnam, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Nepal, each with different attitudes and cultures. Most of them are also in top management positions in the production area. The problem is that they have difficulty controlling absenteeism among their subordinates. From a management perspective, HR must find a solution to address this issue. Can you guys help me with this? Thank you.

Hi,

I think that you should follow the below-mentioned ways. You will see that your employees are coming on/before time. Also, these ideas will help you to reduce absenteeism as well. The ideas include monetary and non-monetary solutions.

Many companies have also experienced this problem, and we have developed measures to bring it down, succeeding to a large extent but not 100%.

1. You can introduce a cash award (Rs100-150) scheme along with an appreciation letter for the workers who do not have any LOP's during that year, and you can give them this on the eve of 26th Jan every year.

2. It has yielded results. Alternatively, you can introduce a 3-year cash award (Rs300/-) per worker who does not have any LOP during the 3 years.

The strength is increasing as well.

3. You can give a silver article on the eve of 26 Jan and have displayed his/her name and awarded photo in the gallery of those employees who have not availed any CL, SL, EL, PL, etc.

4. Lastly, you can adopt various counseling measures for him/her and his/her family members, with the help of the union.

Further, what you can do is just apply these ways not only on absenteeism but also on latecomings.

Regards,

Shweta :) :) :)

Hi,

We do offer cash rewards to our employees, yet we still experience high absenteeism. Perhaps the monetary scheme we have in place is not meeting their expectations.

Hey Ayyub,

I think this kind of practices would not be tolerated in the organization. You should give an absenteeism notice whenever an employee is on LOP without informing his HOD. Also, you may take it in writing about the LOP. If such practices are made in the future, then double salary would be deducted from their salary. Additionally, the heads are also informed not to give such leaves without any genuine reason. Maybe this is the only way you can handle absenteeism as you have tried many ways to control it.

Hope this would be helpful.

Regards,
Bhavik Pandya

You can give weekly incentives to your casuals as we do:

1. In the first week, we give Rs. 60 for 100% attendance.
2. In the second week, Rs. 90 is given if he is 100% present in the first and second weeks.
3. In the third week, Rs. 120 is given if he is 100% present in the first, second week, and third week.
4. In the fourth week, Rs. 150 is given.

If a person is absent in any week, the incentive will start from Rs. 60 again. For example:
- First week: 100% present = Rs. 60 incentive
- Second week: Absent = No incentive
- Third week: 100% present = Rs. 60 incentive, not Rs. 120.

Hi,

Once again, thank you for all the support you have given me in handling absenteeism in my company. I have tried some extreme procedures such as issuing warning letters and implementing a zero-tolerance policy. Ultimately, the company decided to terminate the workers. From the company's perspective, replacing these workers with new hires is a viable solution as their roles can be filled promptly by a new team.

However, from an HR perspective, we encounter numerous challenges such as legal battles at the labor office and potential backlash from the affected workers. As HR professionals, we strive to avoid such conflicts as we are here to support our employees. Recently, there have been many developments in my company, and it seems like there is an overwhelming amount of work to be done. I apologize for the delayed response.

Thank you.

Hi friends,

This is my practical experience on managing absenteeism among workers in the industry where I work, located in a rural area. The workers are residents of surrounding villages only. Absenteeism is very high there. We thought of introducing the postcard information system. Every two months, we list out the absentees and send a postcard to their village, instructing the postman to read out the content of the card at an open place.

The next day, a worker came to my office and requested us not to send such letters to the village. At that time, we counseled the person to reduce absenteeism. It worked out, and automatically the absenteeism percentage came down.

Hi all,

It's great to discuss ideas about educating employees in both ways. You can consider suspending two or three employees for absenteeism while also rewarding others in the same month. Creating a notice that encourages minimal absenteeism for the upcoming month can be effective. After two months, selecting a model employee and organizing a get-together to present awards would be beneficial. Implementing such strategies has proven successful in our organization.

To maintain motivation, consistently post notices in the workers' area. Annually, designate a bonus month to reward those with minimal Loss of Pay (LOP) in the preceding year.

Regards,
Ram

Hi all,

You can also give an attendance bonus of Rs. 100 per month and segregate slabs for the amount. If 1 CL, then Rs. 80; if more than 3 CL, then Rs. 20. LOP means no attendance bonus. The attendance bonus should fall into the CTC offered to them so that it may not increase the cost.

Regards,
Ram

Dear User,

Ours is an Info Comm Company (Supplier to Nokia) where we are engaging casual laborers. Currently, we have three contractors who are supplying the manpower to us. Can we share ideas to control absenteeism? There is an attendance bonus scheme and a production incentive scheme in place. Are there any other ideas? Kindly share.

Nithyanandam

---

Hi all,

In my company, the following actions are taken to control absenteeism:

1. We choose 3 workers based on the recommendation of all department heads by giving ratings. Then, we consolidate all the recommendations into a list and announce it on the 4th of every month. (1st prize - 1001, 2nd Prize - 251, and 3rd prize - 101, along with certificates for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd positions).

2. Employees who complete 3 months without taking any leave or being absent will be awarded Rs. 750. This will affect their salary, and no certificate will be issued.

3. We do not allow employees to perform their duties; instead, we provide only food for 2 to 3 days. The employee will then come to us and request to perform their duties.

4. We have a practice where if an employee comes late from leave or is absent from duty without informing the Head of Department (HOD) or Human Resources Department (HRD), we will instruct the security guards to sit at the security gate where everyone enters the duty. During this time, their colleagues will inquire about the reason for being late. If an employee sits at the gate for 2 to 3 days, they will automatically become frustrated and will not be absent from duty or take leave.

Please implement the above rules in your organization, and you will achieve peace.

Regards,

Lingaraju N.
Email: rajunhrd_1975@rediffmail.com
Phone: 9900552430

Dear,

You can issue them a charge sheet or warning letters for their unauthorized absences and take some stringent disciplinary actions against them.

Apart from that, if you can help them understand the adverse effects of remaining absent in the long term such as becoming ineligible for yearly increments, not generating earned leave, experiencing salary/PF deductions, etc., then things might change.

Regards,
Tanmay Chauhan
AM-HR, JSL Limited

Hi,

For controlling absenteeism, we have the following policy in our organization:

Rs. 250 per month for no leave for three consecutive months, so he/she gets Rs. 750 for three months. Just try such a kind of monetary benefit; it works.

Regards,
Rekhaba

Hi,

Options suggested by Ms. Shweta are really commendable. But I would like to add one more option to the list.

Besides rewarding employees for coming on time, you can ask the latecomers to provide the actual reason in writing for being late to the office.

This would pose a challenge for those who are habitually late because after a week or so, they would not have any false reasons. On the contrary, it would not be a problem for those who are late for genuine reasons.

Regards,

Dev

Hi,

I think that you should follow the below-mentioned ways. You will see that your employees are coming on or before time. Also, these ideas will help you reduce absenteeism. The ideas include monetary and non-monetary solutions. Many companies have also experienced this problem, and we have developed measures that have succeeded to a large extent but not 100%.

1. You can introduce a cash award (Rs100-150) scheme along with an appreciation letter for the workers who do not have any LOP during that year, and you can give this to them on the eve of 26th Jan every year.
2. It has yielded results. Alternatively, you can introduce a 3-year cash award (Rs300) per worker who does not have any LOP during the 3 years. The strength is also increasing.
3. You can give a silver article on the eve of 26th Jan and have their name and awarded photo displayed in the gallery to those employees who have not availed any CL, SL, EL, PL, etc.
4. Lastly, you can adopt various counseling measures for them and their family members with the help of the union. Also, you can apply these ways not only for absenteeism but also for latecomers.

Regards,

Shweta :) :) :)

Hi,

Absenteeism is one of the persistent problems to tackle from personnel administration to HR evolution. I feel the employee should feel interested and motivated to come to the workplace. That interest can be created only by HR. Conducting team-building activities, considering employee suggestions, providing a stress-free environment, offering employee-owned workspace, involving employees in key decisions, and enhancing team bonding should be prioritized within the organization. Last but not least, try to address the personal life issues of employees to tackle absenteeism.

Regards,
Chandrasekhar

Absenteeism can be controlled by counseling and finding out the reason for being absent. It is not necessarily due to a money problem, but there are other reasons as well that can be solved through counseling.

Absenteeism can be controlled through introducing various facilities to the employees, like organizing games and other entertainment activities, implementing a policy, and conducting outside general training programs.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance.

To control the latecomers, our company is using the method mentioned below:

The reporting time in the office is 9:30 a.m. If any employee arrives after 9:45 a.m., it will be considered late attendance. After three instances of late attendance, for every subsequent late arrival, you will be marked as half-day absent.

Hi Ayyub,

Maybe the cultural differences result in absenteeism. You can conduct activity-based training for the employees to create cohesiveness among them. If they have a sense of belonging, it may decrease absenteeism levels. If the issue persists, you can try counseling for the employees.

Dear Ayuub,

I do not agree with my peers that monetary benefits alone will be effective in controlling absenteeism. Along with this, some non-monetary benefits such as appreciation letters, coffee with the HR Manager, one-day picnics, and free meal passes are proving to be more effective.

Additionally, counseling employees to help them understand how absenteeism negatively impacts their career paths and the company's profits is crucial.

We should focus more on intangible benefits rather than solely on direct tangible benefits for our employees.

Thanks & Regards
Gaurav Agarwal
HR Department
Hindalco Industries Ltd
Aditya Birla Group

Hi, my second topic of discussion today is regarding absenteeism among workers. For your information, my company employs workers from various countries such as Vietnam, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Nepal, each with different attitudes and cultures. Most of them are also in top positions in the production area. The issue we are facing is that they are struggling to control absenteeism among their subordinates. From a management perspective, HR must find a solution to address this issue. Can you guys help me with this? Thank you.

Hi,

I like the idea of sending postcards to the villages. In my organization, we are already giving lots of liberty to employees, yet absenteeism is very high. I don't want to spend any money on them to prevent absenteeism. So, I guess the "postcard" idea will work in my company. I will give a notice in the first week of every month mentioning the names of the top 3 absentees and top 3 attendees.

I have encountered a new issue where one of our production leaders, who has been with the company since 1995, did not come to work after taking a leave of 2 days. Additionally, he has not shown up for work without notice for 4 days previously. We have tried contacting him via phone call or SMS, but there has been no response. Upon speaking with his friend, it was mentioned that he has two wives, but both of their homes are empty. Can anyone advise on the next course of action?