Staff sickies costing British industry 1.75 billion a year

Staff pulling sickies is costing British industry 1.75 billion a year and this problem is at its worst during the winter months. But what can small business owners and managers do to combat this epidemic? Business finance solutions firm, Bibby Financial Services has developed a number of tips to help beleaguered entrepreneurs in the next few months. Please see the release below for more details. If you would like to speak to a spokesperson from Bibby Financial Services, do not hesitate to get in touch with me. Regards, Deborah

Staff ìsickiesî leave small firms unwell

The nights are drawing in and winter is just around the corner. Small businesses up and down the country are bracing themselves for the surge in ìsickiesî that always happens during the winter months as the temperature drops and employees prefer to snuggle under the duvet rather than go to work.

According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) employees who throw ìsickiesî in order to get out of going to work cost UK businesses 1.75 billion last year. In fact, itís estimated that 15% of all days off are not for genuine reasons, leaving UK employers with a sick leave bill costing a massive 11.6 billion a year for temporary cover and resulting overtime.

David Robertson, chief executive of Bibby Financial Services says, ìAbsenteeism is a growing problem for British industry and is a very difficult issue for employers to deal with. Larger organizations such as Tesco have introduced incentive schemes in which staff with exemplary records are rewarded with extra paid holiday, whilst others are hiring nurses to take calls from employees calling in sick in an effort to curb bogus sickness claims. However, the small business community just do not have the resources in place to deal quickly and effectively with the issue and it is these firms that are most affected by staff ësickiesí.î

Bibby Financial Services has developed the following tips to help small business owners and managers tackle the absenteeism issue head on.

If you donít already have a sick leave policy in place, get one. Have clear rules in place and ensure all staff members are aware of them. A policy might state that staff need to call in sick by a certain time of the day and that a doctorís note is required after seven days of absence

Insist that all staff calling in sick speak directly to you. Staff who are ìtrying it onî will think twice about throwing a sickie if they have to speak directly to the boss to justify their absence

Look out for patterns of absence. Staff who exploit the system often fall into habits that, if you keep records, can be identified as patterns. For example, repeated absences involving Mondays and Fridays may be significant or people who fall ill during major sporting events or when the weather is good could reveal a ìsickie-takerî

Take a practical approach to absence management. Try to keep up to date with what jobs your staff are involved in. This will help you to arrange cover and enable you to identify if there are any work-related problems that may be causing these absences

Stay on top of recurrent absenteeism. Arrange a meeting to sort out any ongoing health problems or to catch up on what work has been missed. By demonstrating that you are interested and care about your staff it will make them feel more responsible and less likely to take advantage

Take immediate action if you find out that absenteeism is not genuine. Act quickly if regular bogus absenteeism becomes apparent and start the formal disciplinary process. Explain to staff that they are taking advantage of colleagues as well as their employer when they fake an illness

If you have to take disciplinary action, be clear why. Ensure that the employee is made aware that it is repeated absence from work and therefore their ìcapabilityî to do the job that is causing the problem. (If the process ends in dismissal it is easier to justify a lack of capability rather than getting into arguments about whether illnesses were genuine or
not)

David Robertson concludes, ìThe issue of absenteeism is a complex one for small businesses to deal with. Every owner and manager wants to trust their employees fully and it can be difficult for them to face up to the fact that there may be one or two members of staff that take advantage of the system. However, much can be done to prevent this happening. By making all staff feel valued and that their role within the business is recognised and appreciated, employees will feel more motivated and this can ultimately lead to a reduction in absenteeism. Having a well thought out sick leave policy that is known by all members of staff and implemented at all times will also do much to reduce the likelihood of staff throwing bogus ësickiesí.î