Predictors Of Absenteeism In The Workplace

BY DARCEY LAKHDAR

In a perfect world, front-line leaders and management can start the workday off by looking in a magic crystal ball and predicting the weeks events, including employee absences. As this is not likely to ever be a true source of helping to maintain crucial staffing levels for your call center, leaders must know how to predict unplanned employee absences. Fortunately, the topic of predicting absenteeism has been well researched. 

While the complexity of measuring the reasons for absenteeism is great, there is, however, research and scholarly studies using least squares analysis and extensive time-lapse evaluations providing a plethora of knowledge on determining the root causes of employee absenteeism. It goes without saying that unplanned absenteeism equates to work not getting done, or at least not efficiently. The per-employee cost for absenteeism in 2002 was over $800/year, which is up $34 over the previous year and up $179 from 2000. In addition, direct and indirect costs combined -- including costs for replacement workers such as lost productivity -- can account for five to 17 percent of a companys total payroll.

Along with research on the topic and personal experience as a practicing Human Resources professional in a call center work environment, the following are the top five predictors of absenteeism. Use this information in your practice to determine more effective work policies and procedures which will retain employees and increase their devotion to your organization, leading to less loss of productivity.

TOP FIVE PREDICTORS OF EMPLOYEE ABSENTEEISM:

1. Previous years absences. Without a doubt, the most reliable measure of an employee's future attendance record is their record from the past. If at all possible, include attendance inquiries as part of your companys employment background checks to minimize hiring the more absent-prone employees.

2.  Job Characteristics. Low amounts of skill variety, task identity and autonomy significantly affect a persons likelihood to have attendance issues. Ensure that an employee has a mix of tasks and is challenged by the work and interested. Ensure the employee finds meaningfulness in their job and understands his importance and impact on the business operations. Finally, ensure the employee is aware of his responsibility for outcomes of the work completed. Such improvements will mean the difference between an employees ability to attend work and the employees motivation to attend work.

3. Stress. The level of stress and more specifically, the lack of work-stress release mechanisms have a direct correlation to employee absenteeism.  Research reflects significant connections between actual physical health ailments brought on by stress. Illnesses, depression, traumatic work or life events can all increase stress and absences from work. In addition, because people are not always able to avoid work-related physical stress due to the nature of the work required, they have to learn to address and manage it. It can be argued that ergonomic programs in the workplace can decrease absenteeism costs.

4. Shift Work. Commonly, people who work nights or off-hours tend to have more absences as these hours result in more scheduling conflicts with activities and responsibilities outside of the workplace.  When possible, allow flexible schedules for such employees but that still allow for the work to get done.

5.  Personalities. While not always the most blatant factors of employee absenteeism, the role of human personalities can not be ignored. Neglectful behaviors serve as reliable offshoots of absenteeism. Employees with low achievement orientations, aggression, instability and high sociability are more likely to be absent frequently. This has been tagged as absence-proneness in psychological references. Selection processes, which identify these characteristics, can reduce absenteeism.

Concurrently, human resources personnel have the potential for positively influencing the business when accurately able to predict the factors influencing employee absenteeism by behaving proactively. However, the ever-changing face of business requires HR to re-evaluate the once-obvious distinction of absenteeism. Understanding why absenteeism is such a prevalent problem in today's workforce is crucial to a company's ability to minimize its detrimental impact; however, there is no single quick fix to the problem. Fortunately, knowing how to recognize the predictive nature of such behavior is clearly a step in the right direction for any organization.

Darcey Lakhdar, PHR, is a graduate of the University of Central Florida and is currently pursuing her master's degree of Human Resources at Rollins College in Orlando, FL as well.  While certified as a Society for Human Resources Management HR Professional (PHR), Darcey draws from her four years of HR experience in manufacturing and call center work environments.  Darcey Lakhdar can be reached via e-mail at dm1205@msn.com.

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REFERENCES

Griffeth, R. W., & Hom, P. W. (2001). Retaing valued employees. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Harrison, David A. & Martocchio, Joseph J. (1998). Time for absenteeism: A 20-year review of origins, offshoots, and outcomes. Journal of Management 24, 305-350.

Martocchio, Joseph J.; et al (2000, Autumn). Connections between lower back pain, interventions, and absence from work: A time-based meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology 53, 595-624.

Parmelee, M. A. (2003, February). Absenteeism survey points out need for changes in human resources programs. American water Works Association Journal, 95(2), 47-49.

Rentsch, Joan R. & Steel, Robert P. (1998, Spring). Testing the durability of job characteristics as predictors of absenteeism over a six-year period. Personnel Psychology 51, 165-190.

Watson Wyatt Canada (2000, September 20). Cost of employee absenteeism up, says Watson Wyatt study. Retrieved November 21, 2003, http://www.benefitsworld.com/AA/Abmgt/absence-wyatt092000.asp

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