absenteeism in workplace and counselling help to overcome from absenteeism

1. Absenteeism

2. Introduction
• Employee’s presence at work place during the scheduled time is highly
essential for the smooth running of the production process in particular
and the organization in general. Absenteeism has long been considered a
significant and pervasive problem in the organizations. Despite the
significance of their presence, employees sometimes fail to report at the
work place during the scheduled time, which is known as ‘absenteeism’.
Absenteeism is the term generally used to refer to unscheduled employee
absences from the workplace or workers absent from his regular work
when he is normally scheduled to work.

3. Meaning
Absenteeism is an employee's intentional or habitual
absence from work. While employers expect workers to
miss a certain number of workdays each year,
excessive absences can equate to decreased productivity
and can have a major effect on company finances, morale
and other factors.

4. Definition
• According to labour bureau Simla defines absenteeism as the failure of
worker to report for work when he is scheduled to work.
• According to Webster’s Dictionary, “absenteeism is the practice or habit of
being an ‘absence’ and an absentee is one who habitually stays away”.
• Fillipo defines absenteeism as a condition that exists when a person fails
to come to work when he is properly scheduled to work.

5. Types of Absenteeism
• Authorized absenteeism
• Unauthorized absenteeism
• Willful absenteeism
• Caused by circumstances beyond one’s control

6. characteristics
• The rate of absenteeism is the lowest on pay day; it increases considerably on
the days following the payment of wages and bonus.
• Absenteeism is generally high among the workers below 25 years of age and
those above 40 years of age.
• The rate of absenteeism varies from department to department within an
organization. Generally, it is high in the production department.
• Absenteeism in traditional industries is seasonal in character.

7. Causes for absenteeism
• Serious accidents, illnesses
• Low morale of the employee
• Poor working conditions
• Boredom on the job
• Lack of job satisfaction
• Inadequate leadership on the part of the supervisor

8. Cont..
• Personal problems(financial, marital, child care)
• Poor physical fitness
• Inadequate nutrition
• Low level of wages and unsound personal policies
• Transport problems
• Stress and heavy work load

9. Role of counselling
• Absenteeism affects the organization from multiple angles. It severely affects the
production process and the business process. The effect of unauthorized
absenteeism is more compared other types of absenteeism. However it would be
difficult to completely avoid absenteeism more than half of those stressed at
work would have to take time off without counselling, new research from Capita
Health and Wellbeing has found. Through proper counselling employees helps to
know what the problem they facing and to know how to overcome from the
problem. counselling helps employees to reduces confusion, allowing the client
to make effective decisions leading to positive changes in their attitude and/or
behavior. The ultimate aim of counselling is to enable the client to make their
own choices, reach their own decisions and to act upon them accordingly.

10. Case study
• Suman a employee working in a private company and he got salary of 8000 p.m and he has to work for 10 hours in a
day and also he as to work extra time for a same salary and also there is heavy work allot to him and he have old age
parents in his family and they are suffering from diabetic problem he has to take them to hospital in every week and
in the organization if he absent for a day salary as cutoff of rupees 200 per day . He absent for work for the treatment
of his parents and if he fail to take them to hospital his parents caught in problems he as to absent for his work in a
week and also he as severe work allot to him for to work and he also facing the problem of illness and mentally he
face problems so he as to reduce his work and match the work what he as to do. One of his friend inform to take
counselling to overcome from the problem and he took counselling and he tell all about problems he facing and
counsellor as a part of his job to give guidance to the problem faced by the employee and he said you inform to your
employer when you want to taken your parents to hospital and make the shift change instead of make absent from
work and do the work what you assigned to you in a proper time allocate to you and make attention about your
health and consult a doctor what the problem you are facing and get well. By doing the work continuously you got
trouble in future so as possible look at other jobs make you feel comfort and counsellor told him to work in
environment you feel well and if you fell well your potential to work increases it yields more work and work hard.

13. • Selecting the employees by testing them thoroughly regarding their aspirations,
value systems, responsibility and sensitiveness.
• Adopting a humanistic approach in dealing with the personal problems.
• Following a proactive approach in identifying and redressing employee grievances.
• Providing hygienic working conditions.
• Providing welfare measures and fringe benefits, balancing the need for the
employees and the ability of organization.
• Providing high wages and allowances based on the organizational financial position.

14. • Improving the communication network, particularly the upward communication.
• Providing leave facility based on the needs of the employees and organizational
requirement.
• Providing safety and health measures.
• Providing cordial human relations and industrial relations.
• Educating the workers.
• Counseling the workers about their career, income and expenditure, habits and
culture.

15. • Free flow of information, exchanging of ideas, problems etc… between
subordinate and superior.
• Granting leave and financial assistance liberally in case of sickness of
employee and his family members.
• Offering attendance bonus and inducements.
• Providing extensive training, encouragement, special allowances in cash for
technological advancements.