First of all, it is obviously useful to know what is meant by frequent absences. As the introduction said, someone is listed as a frequent absentee if they report sick 3 times per 12 months (or more). The average Dutch person reports sick a maximum of 1 time per year. So much for the numbers, they are not the most important aspect. What matters most is that frequent (short) absences are often followed by a long-term absence, and that is something that you as a manager obviously want to avoid.
What you need to know
- Illness is something that happens to you (generally speaking), but absence is behaviour, a choice. In about half the cases of calling in sick, the employee finds it hard to decide whether they should call in sick or not. What tips the balance in one or other direction is made up of a number of other factors. For example, whether someone feels valued, enjoys their work and feels connected to colleagues and the organisation.
- In about 80% of reporting sick, the health issues are not really serious enough to stay off work. There are options for part-time, adjusted or different work. These absences are also known as grey absenteeism.
- Grey absenteeism is generally the cumulative result of a number of factors that can have a medical cause or result from factors in a person's private life, work or motivation This builds up cumulatively until the proverbial last straw leads to absenteeism.
- The more sources of energy (things that energise someone and make them happy) offset the problems, the less the likelihood that they will report sick.
- A positive approach will always have more impact than a negative one. No-one wants to be the owner of a problem, we all want to own a solution. In an adult working relationship you can also place demands on each other and call upon someone's sense of ownership. That also requires you to offer enough potential resolutions that the person can take action for themselves.
Get to work
With the above points fresh in your mind, you can have a productive discussion about frequent absences. There is not much point in digging into each individual absence. You will quickly find yourself entangled in a discussion about how bad the illness was or whether or not it was serious enough to stay home. That is not the way to prevent frequent absenteeism, quite the reverse. Ask open questions and listen to the answers. Everyone likes to feel they are being listened to. Look at the bigger picture. Explain that this discussion is not being held to attack anyone or make them feel bad, but that people are missed when they are off sick and you want to try and prevent this happening.
Sample questions
For example, you can ask the employee:
- How are you doing generally?
- How do you feel about your work, does it enthuse you or not?
- How could the work be changed to make you feel (more) enthusiastic about it?
- What are you strong points, and can you make use of these to prevent absences?
- Is something going on at home for which you need some time or support?
Ask this while respecting the employee's privacy (and without asking for medical details, which you as a manager are not allowed to do).
And of course you can also be clear about what you expect from an employee and what agreements you want to reach. Although you do not judge someone solely on their attendance record, an employee is paid to deliver certain results from their work. If that is put at risk because of sick days, then you can query it with the person.
These articles might also be of interest:
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