Management of Employee Absenteeism - Essay Example

Student Name: Tutor: Title: Managing Personnel and Human resources Course: Management of employee absenteeism in contemporary organizations Introduction Employee absenteeism is a major problem facing the management in modern organizations. Absenteeism has greater implications on the welfare of the organization but the most glaring of all is the economic aspect of it in terms of production and profitability. When a worker is absent, it means that the organization will spent money without adding a unit to its production, or it will strain the present employees in order to achieve its normal level of production. The performance of contemporary organizations can be highly affected if employee absence is not adequately controlled or dealt with (Connors, 2011). An organization has to make sure it keeps its employees in the working environment for attainment of the goals, objectives, and mission of its formation. Employees must have a good and genuine reason before they are given permission to be absent from their place of work. If absenteeism is not carefully managed, it may lead to worker turnover that affect the productivity of the company and force the organization to recruit new employees. Recruitment process is expensive. Experienced and seasoned employees can be lost. Absenteeism has to be managed with wellness and health programs. Companies which have wellness programs that are forward-thinking have made employees to feel good with regard to their health and they do not use much other time on sick leave. It is important for the organization to provide a healthy environment for its employees. This means that the pressures or expectations of employees are appropriate with regard to their abilities and available resources, to the degree of control they posses on their work, and the support they get from people who are special and important to them. Health is not only with regard to absence of infirmity or disease but a positive state of the entire mental, social, and physical well being (Watson, 2007). In order to avoid absenteeism, the organization has to maintain a healthy working environment and ensure that the health of its employees is watched carefully. When workers are injured physically they will end up missing work as they seek for medical treatment from hospitals. Work-related stress has to be done away with and where an employee needs physical examination, the organization has to have a medical scheme that will cater for the medical bill of the employee (Koslowsky & Krausz, 2002). Stress that is work-related is the reaction that people may show when they are presented with work pressures and demands which are not matched to their abilities and knowledge and therefore challenge their ability of coping with the situation at work. Stress happens in a wide range of work situations but it is usually made more visible when employees feel that they do not have support of colleagues and supervisors, together with minimum control on the work processes. Pressure in the workplace is inevitable owing to the demands of the contemporary work environment. Pressure which is seen as acceptable by a worker may keep them motivated, alert, and able to learn and work, depending of the resources available and personal characteristics (Fallon & McConnell, 2007). When the pressure mounts to an excessive level or unmanageable, it results into stress. Stressful financial times can lead to employee absence. The management should be interested in the personal life of the employee and even offer advice on financial management so as to make workers invest wisely their hard-earned salaries. Training and development is important in improving the self-esteem of employees particularly when they feel that their abilities to perform certain tasks are limited. Information is power. Employees have to be thoroughly trained in their areas of specialty in order to increase their performance and make them confidence. Stress can lead to employee absenteeism in contemporary organizations (Bratton & Gold, 2012). Consequently, if training can assist the employee to cope in the workplace and avoid stress, then it is better for the organization to make it a priority. The goal of management development and training program in an organization is to boost employee capabilities as well as organizational capabilities. Workers are less likely to experience work-related stress when pressures and demands match their abilities and knowledge; they can exercise control over their work and they receive support from colleagues and supervisors. If an organization invests in the improvement of skills and knowledge of its employees, the investment is given back in the form of more effective and productive workers. Development and training programs can either be focused on team performance or individual performance. Post-layoff work environment is very stressful to the employees who remain. They perceive a combination of low control and threat to their work. Their morale is low because they are uncertain about their work security and they foresee a situation where they could be the ones leaving the organization (Torrington, Taylor, Hall & Atkinson, 2011). Such stressful and low morale in the work place can lead to high rates of absenteeism as employees struggle to cope with the loss of friends or use the time to apply for jobs in other organization which they think are stable. After a massive lay off, it is important for the remaining employees to be counseled and educated adequately on why the layoff was necessary. When they see their colleagues as victims of circumstances they cannot concentrate in their line of duty for fear of being the next victims (Fallon & McConnell, 2007). The survivors may think that another layoff is in the offing. Layoffs create uncertainty within the organization and make the employees to cast doubts about their future in the organization with the regard to career growth. In order to avoid absenteeism, the management should prepare the employees for layoffs and explain the importance of the process to the growth of the company. Downsizing is traumatic to members of their organization and they cannot stop to wonder about when their turn will come. Remaining employees need reassurance and possible pay hike to boost their morale and encourage them to be committed to their daily chores in the organization (Rothwell, 2005). The psychological health of the body determines how the body will function physically. It is important to ensure that workers do not worry too much about their future in their organization since they can develop ailments that will definitely make them miss work or absent themselves. People in leadership positions in an organization have a great role to play on the attendance pattern of their staff. These directors and managers have a double role that are supposed to play: creating a work environment that make people like to come to work, and dealing with both voluntary and involuntary absences as they occur. Involuntary absence does not happen at will and the employee finds a genuine reason of staying away from the place work, for instance, due to sickness. Voluntary absence involves the worker being away from the place of work without a substantive reason of doing so, for instance, to visit a friend or do her hair. Motivation of workers is important in the maintenance of a healthy working environment (Pogue, 1997). The leadership can cultivate a culture of positive attendance. When new employee find out that positive attendance forms the culture of the organization, they find it hard to break the culture through voluntary absence. Positive employee motivation is important in reducing employee absence in the contemporary organizations. Job satisfaction is important in making employees to everyday look out to their work. Supportive leadership is important towards attainment of employee motivation. The employee has to feel that he belongs to the organization and that he is loved, cherished, and treated as an important person that contribute uniquely to the performance of the organization. Moreover, the employee morale can be raised through rewards and recognition from the employer. Such programs support the adoption of important behaviors in the organization like positive attendance. Bohlander and Snell (2007) explain that being appreciated and respected by significant others is one of the basic human needs. Employee will look forward to being committed to their work. The financial incentives and bonuses can be used to make workers think positively about their work and focus on giving their best to the organization. Employees and generally, people, go to greater heights to seek approval and acceptance. Many experiences that are stressful are connected to being offended, for instance, through ridicule or social exclusion. The health and well-being of the employee will be adversely affected when she or he feels that he has been offended. This may later lead to voluntary absence from the place of work. The work policies that are provided in the organization should offer safe and secure working environment for the employees (Rothwell, 2005). The management has to develop effective attendance programs which should be proactive. The programs have to look deeply into the root causes of absenteeism and identify the prevalence of the problem in the organization. The programs have to be aligned with organizational goals. The management has to establish why employees are absenting themselves from the place of work. Any program developed should aim at curbing the causes of absenteeism and recognizing the role that employees play in the organizational performance. Conclusion Employee absence in contemporary organization is a problem that has both indirect and direct consequences to the performance of the organization. Reasons from both voluntary and involuntary absence in contemporary organization are varying. Stressful work situations are primarily responsible for employee absence. Leaderships of the organization have a big role to play in developing programs that can motivate employee with the aim of achieving job satisfaction. Training and development is a vital process through which employees can be equipped to cope with the challenges at their workplace. When the abilities and knowledge of the employees fall short of assisting them to cope with the challenges at the workplace, stress may develop on the part of the employee. The health of the employee is important in making him or her achieve his obligations at the place of work. Consequently the employee has to be socially, mentally, and physically healthy. Good working conditions are important in encouraging employees to develop positive behaviors in their place of work. The post-layoff environment in the organization can be very detrimental on the morale of the remaining employees. The leadership of the organization has to counsel survivors of a layoff before and after the layoff in order to explain the essence of the layoff. A state of uncertainty is normally created when the remaining employees are not sure about their future in the organization and have thoughts about being the next victims. Organizational leadership developing a positive attendance culture is important in curbing employee absence. The workers have to feel that they are appreciated and accepted within the organization. Being offended has a negative impact on the morale of the employee and hence his attendance. Employee Absence has to be dealt with. References Bohlander, GW & Snell, S., 2007, Managing Human Resources, Cengage Learning, New York. Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2012, Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice, (5th edition), Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan. Connors, T.D., 2011, The Volunteer Management Handbook: Leadership Strategies for Success, John Wiley & Sons, London. Fallon, L. & McConnell, CR., 2007, Human Resource Management in Health Care: Principles and Practice, Jones & Bartlett Learning, Sydney. Koslowsky, M & Krausz, M., 2002, Voluntary Employee Withdrawal and In-attendance: A Current Perspective, Springer, New Mexico. Murray, P., Poole, D., & Jones, G., 2006, Contemporary Issues in Management and Organizational Behavior, Cengage Learning Australia, Melbourne. Pogue, G., 1997, Employee Assistance Programs on Liberal Arts Campuses, University Press of America, New Jersey. Rothwell, W.J., 2005, Career Planning and Succession Management: Developing Your Organization's Talent--for Today and Tomorrow, Greenwood Publishing Group, London. Torrington, D., Taylor, S., Hall L. and Atkinson, C., 2011, Human Resource Management, (8th ed.), Harlow: FT Prentice Hall. Watson, KD. 2007, Remote Management: Traditional Leadership Behaviors in a Contemporary Work Environment, Kansas State University, Department of Psychology. Read More