Any savings in the cost of absence can be set against the introduction of other benefits, such as occupational health, counseling and health education. Savings will also be obvious in improved productivity and from not having to pay for cover for absent staff.

Un quantifiable benefits of the management of attendance include improved morale and motivation, and hence increased productivity, adding value to the organisation.

Absence includes:

• certificated or uncertified sickness absence
• long-term sickness
• unauthorised absence and persistent unauthorised lateness.

Quantifiable costs include:

• the cost of occupational sick pay
• the cost of temporary staff brought in to cover for the absence
• the costs of overtime payments.

Hidden costs include:

• those arising from administration
• increased pressure on colleagues who cover for the absentee, with a potential increase in stress, lowering of morale and job satisfaction and, in the longer term, lower productivity generally.

Measuring Absence

Measuring absences gives indications about the scale of the problem in the workplace, the type of absence that is dominant and where in the workplace the biggest attendance problems occur. Managers can then use this information to manage attendance positively.

The average absence in a workplace is normally measured as a percentage of hours lost per week or per month: total number of hours of absence x 100 = % lost.

Reasons for Absence

Although the main reason for absence is usually given as sickness, other underlying factors can contribute to the problem of persistent short-term absences. This sort of absence may occur for the following reasons.

The individual may experience problems with management (management style, personality traits) or a colleague; there may be a poor performance issue; there may be frustration with the job content; the job may be perceived as too stressful; or the individual may not be intrinsically motivated to work.

The culture of the organisation may influence attendance, for example the employee may feel unseen, not valued or treated as an individual; work may be inefficiently organised, leading to frequent changes and confusion; absence may be felt to be tolerated and the policy and procedures to deal with absence may be unclear.

The working environment may contribute to pushing up absence, for example excessive heat, cold, noise, type of equipment available to do the job, peaks and troughs in the work.