Absenteeism

A recipe for employee motivation

16 May 2017 | Morten Bennedsen

Absenteeism is less prevalent in family firms than in non-family firms. That’s because how much time employees take off and hence the effort they put into their jobs is largely a factor of an organisation’s culture.

Court judgement will make employers sick

15 Sep 2009 | Brian Amble

The European Court of Justice is going to win few friends among employers following a ruling that means employees who are ill during their holiday can demand extra holiday from their employers to make up for it.

Swine flu could extend recession by two years

20 Jul 2009 | Nic Paton

Managers should get a good rest over the summer because, if swine flu really takes hold from the autumn, it could extend the recession by a further two years.

Be careful when playing hooky

16 Feb 2009 | Bryan Alaspa

You know how it goes, sometimes. The alarm starts blaring in your ear and the very last thing in the world you want to do is get up and head into work. Aren't you tempted to just call in sick even when you know you're perfectly healthy?

Letting the side down

09 Dec 2008 | Dan Bobinski

One of the staff Paul manages doesn't pull his weight, is always coming up with excuses for time off and now clams to have picked up an injury. Something needs to be done – but what?

A new level of deviousness

20 Mar 2008 | Bryan Alaspa

With everything that's written about bad bosses, it is easy to forget that employees can be as bad as any manager. Take this guy, for example.

Sick leave becomes an electoral issue

20 Nov 2007 | Derek Torres

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, an astonishing 43 percent of employees in the private sector (that's 50 million people) don't get paid sick leave.

We'll pay you to stay healthy, say U.S bosses

08 Nov 2007 | Nic Paton

You might think the benefits of getting and staying healthy are self-evident. But more American companies are finding they are having to pay workers to get the message.

British managers too afraid to call in sick

12 Oct 2007 | Nic Paton

One in three British managers is so afraid to take time off work that they will drag themselves into the office from their sick-bed if they have to.

Two thirds of absentees simply sick of work

11 Oct 2007 | Nic Paton

Two thirds of U.S workers who call in sick at the last minute are not ill at all, costing businesses more than three quarters of a million dollars a year.

Britain's booze culture fuelling £2bn absence bill

18 Sep 2007 | Nic Paton

It's not stress, flu or bad backs that make most workers call in sick, it's because they've been drinking too heavily the night before, say British managers.

How much leave is too much?

10 Sep 2007 | Derek Torres

An Illinois court recently listened to arguments in the case of Jennifer Smith, an employee with a reputation for absenteeism, who claimed a 13th FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act) leave in 12 years of employment.

Sick or lazy?

03 Sep 2007 | Bryan Alaspa

Now there's a new excuse for persistently not showing up for work (to go with such classics as 'my dog ate the car keys'). According to German researchers, persistent absenteeism could be a symptom of work phobia.

No sign of slow-down in sickie epidemic

10 Apr 2007 | Brian Amble

Britain's bosses are convinced that their staff just can't resist the lure a long weekend at their expense, with new figures suggesting that around one in eight workplace absences involve staff 'pulling a sickie'.

Work can be a real pain

01 Mar 2007 | Nic Paton

American workers are much more likely to struggle into work when they are ill than a decade ago, with many dragging themselves into the office even when they are in chronic pain.

Europeans working fewer hours but under greater stress

22 Feb 2007 | Nic Paton

Europeans are working fewer hours a week, but the extra pace and intensity of the workplace is pushing stress levels higher, a 31-country study has found.

One day you will die

08 Feb 2007 | Max McKeown

Sickies are a big deal. Employers complain about lazy, dishonest employees but is one day per person per year such a big deal? And aren't there more important questions to ask, like: why don't they want to come to work?

Employers get wise to peternity leave

30 Jan 2007 | Brian Amble

A growing number of employers are allowing their employees to take peternity leave to care for their pet if they are ill or need to go to the vet.

Hangovers hit the Aussie economy

11 Dec 2006 | Brian Amble

Hangovers cost the Australian economy some A$437 million (US$344m / £180m) a year with workers claiming more than 2.6 million days off sick each year as a result of the morning after the night before.

Don't feel like turning up to work today? You're not the only one.

06 Dec 2006 | Nic Paton

The number of American workers skiving off work is at its highest level for seven years, a new poll has suggested, with those who are badly managed and fed up the most likely to find an excuse not to come in.