Absencecare blog

Have you ever been coughed on by a “Wickie?”

A recent report commissioned by our partner Ellipse presents the findings of Dr Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University.  The report highlights that workplace and technology changes also demand an absence management revolution.  Ellipse is an insurance provider who combines our absence management service with their classic income protection insurance to provide their comprehensive InteractPlus product.  Ellipse’s CEO John Ritchie explains the difficulties companies are currently facing, “Absent employees are getting ‘lost’ in the system, illnesses are allowed to spiral into chronic conditions and line managers are burdened with a responsibility they are often ill-equipped or too ‘time poor’ to handle.”  We at Absencecare aim to tackle these problems and provide a clear solution.

Are you wondering what a “Wickie” is?  It is a “Working Sickie” and has become commonplace with 80% of people working ill.  Another recent phenomenon has come about with the use of the internet in everyday business: “STOIC” employees. “Sick Though Often Inbox Checking” employees are a product of the mobile technology working generation who feel the pressure to keep up with business even when ill.  The findings of this study come at a time where absenteeism is costing the UK business £32 billion a year (PwC, 2011) and we at Absencecare are working to save our clients money every day!  It’s time to tackle the WIMPS (Works Ill, Moans Persistently) and find the MIAs (Missing in Absence) by closely managing employee absenteeism.

For more information on this product visit www.ellipse.co.uk/interactplus and as always, please feel free to get in touch with Absencecare at www.absencecare.co.uk  or call us on 0207 378 1298.

How is Stress influencing your workplace?

The statement “reducing absenteeism will improve productivity” is one that is familiar to many of us. Using tools which track absence in the workplace, such as Absencecare will help you evaluate how your workplace is performing.  Whilst some employees might view this tool as being somewhat like the ‘sickie police’, it provides some interesting data on the health of your workplace.  Long term absence from the workplace produces a major drain on productivity, if these causes are addressed well in your workforce, productivity can be significantly improved.

 

The number one cause of long term absence in the workplace is workplace stress according to a recent survey by Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)/Simplyhealth Absence Management survey (2011).  Interestingly, stress was the number one cause of absence in both manual jobs and non-manual workers, it affects us all.  Whilst there is always going to be some level of stress in our lives, it is learning how to manage this effectively which can make a huge difference both to the individual, and the company. You might know someone that has many competing priorities who still seems to juggle these reasonably well, whereas others appear to manage minor problems in a catastrophic manner – this is the difference between good and poor stress management.

 

New Year, New Targets: The Hidden Benefits of an Aspirational Target

An aspirational absence target is something a company strives to achieve.  They are not always created as an achievable goal in the short term, but in many cases those who set targets believe that in seeking the achievement, the right kind of behaviour is encouraged from members of the organisation. 

In August 2004 the CEO of BskyB, James Murdoch, announced a target of 10 million subscribers by the end of 2010.  At the time the growth rate of new Sky customers was rapidly slowing, and likely to stagnate at 7.5 million within three years.  An increase of 40% looked highly unlikely, but by November 2010 the 10 million target was surpassed.  By setting an extremely ambitious target, James Murdoch was able to create a fillip in the business that orientated the whole organisation towards the achievement of that single goal.

A Discussion of Carol Black's “Health at Work” Report

Businesses are becoming increasingly aware of the costs of workplace absence and recent statistics are able to put a monetary figure on this problem. The November 2011 independent review entitled “Health at Work” led by Dame Carol Black the government's health adviser and David Frost former director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, highlights the following costs:

• Sickness absences cost the economy around £15 billion a year, predominantly in lost output.
• For employers, the financial costs of sick pay and other indirect costs of managing absence are estimated at £9 billion per year.
• The State spends £13 billion annually on health-related benefits.

The Complexities of Collecting Absence Data In-House

Absencecare has been in business since 2004, and every so often senior business management ask the question “why can’t we do ‘this’ in-house?”   Sometimes it is not entirely clear what “this” refers to, but it is worth addressing the rationale for outsourcing the collection of absence data.

Firstly, let’s take a look at what would drive a stakeholder to ask this question – if you are championing the idea of a service like Absencecare’s within your business, you probably need to go a bit further than just responding “we can’t do this in-house!”. 

Why registration is the gateway to all decisions made and services provided

Historically, forward looking organisations have recognised that there are two significant benefits derived from good levels of employee health:

1. High productivity
2. Low employee turnover

Productivity gains are achieved from the usual sources – lower business disruption as a result of infrequent short term absence, little requirement for agency staff cover, and low absence administration overheads for line management. In the longer term, healthy staff (both in body and mind) tend to be engaged employees – and engaged employees stick around.

How can you stop flu from infecting your workforce?

The day is just beginning and there is a whole pile of invoicing in your in tray that needs to be completed; you have a list from here to kingdom come and it’s a cold September morning, you have just managed to lumber yourself off the overcrowded tube; gathering the last bit of strength you have to rush into work, before the rest of your colleagues arrive. The phone rings, to which you pick up to hear a croaky, weak voice on the phone: "Yeah, hello, I’m really sorry, but I have the flu!...I’m not sure when I will be in next".

Is employer commitment to employee wellbeing only skin-deep?

Louisa Peacock, Jobs Editor of the Telegraph, picked up on employers’ attitudes to employee wellbeing initiatives in her article about Lord Sugar and the Apprentice this week. Lord Sugar’s dismissal of a product aimed at reducing back pain among employees was a sign of the prevailing disregard for wellbeing initiatives despite the government focus on these issues over the last few years.

How will rising retirement age affect sickness absence levels?

The Government is phasing out the default retirement age (DRA) from April 2011 and it will be completely abolished by 1^st October 2011. This means that employers can no longer use the fixed retirement age of 65 as a basis of retiring employees. There have been mixed views about this change both from employers and employees alike. Many employers welcome the change whilst others fear reduced productivity and difficulty getting rid of unproductive staff members. Some employees, on the other hand, are keen to continue working beyond 65 and the initiative has been praised for reducing age discrimination. Others have been looking forward to their retirement and feel betrayed by the government that seems to be pulling back on pensions whilst also expecting greater efforts from workers both in terms of service years and in pension contributions.

Line managers or people management specialists?

It’s very interesting to follow the discussions around absence and employee management in the current financial climate. Both absence and presenteeism feature in debates on how to maximise productivity and arguments are made one way and the other about which is worse, low productivity at work or spells of absence from work. A lot of recent commentaries in the HR forums also focus around issues of employee engagement, which seems to be the new Achilles’ heel since monetary motivation boosters aren’t always an option. This has been particularly widely discussed since CMI's Economic Outlook Survey indicated that 70 per cent of employers had reported deterioration in morale over the past six months.