Absence management

All the statistics show that absence management is a win-win strategy. Employers reduce not just their employee-related claims but also a whole raft of other costs, both direct and indirect, associated with having people off work. Employees get immediate assistance – which sometimes can make the difference between a speedy return to work and long-term disability; in many cases preserve their earnings potential, and have the added assurance that they are a valued asset.

With so much going for it, how come that absence management is not an embedded part of many organisations’ policies? Why are businesses that would never consider leaving a faulty machine on the production line unrepaired, still prepared to accept employee absence as an inevitability, about which they can do nothing?

These were among the questions that our panel of experts addressed at this month’s roundtable discussion. And it was clear that, whatever the proven benefits, introducing absence management is something that needs to be ‘sold’ to many organisations. Buy-in is key, not just at the top but from the line managers who will be applying the process and the employees who will be using it. Having good data on existing absence rates is also important in order to identify problem areas and to measure improvements.

Some organisations have gone part of the way with rehabilitation programmes related to occupational injuries and sickness. But the holistic approach, which can provide even greater returns, includes conditions occurring outside the workplace. With the high costs associated with an employee’s absence, should an organisation really differentiate regarding where and when the cause occurred?

The clear message from this discussion is that absence management makes businesses more efficient and promotes the well-being of employees – as I said at the start, a win-win situation.