Absenteeism – truth can be stranger than fiction

In 2006, the sixty companies comprising more than 100 000 employees in the CAM Solutions absenteeism study have had to deal with a myriad of reasons for absenteeism. This is according to CAMS CEO Johnny Johnson, who says that while the highest number of employees take absenteeism for the same reason—influenza, bronchitis, back pain and gastroenteritis—it is the reasons seldom given by doctors to explain sick absenteeism that provide the most interest.

“An employee in our of our sample companies was recently excused for one day because of a temporary loss of smell and taste. One has to ask how this would have impacted on his or her productivity. Another was excused because of a fingernail infection. In this case, a typist might have a legitimate reason to be absent, but it does seem a rather feeble excuse. Another employee had a foreign body lodged in his nose, a reason more often given for not attending pre-school than adult work. Another took two days off due to sneezing, and one has to feel that the sneezing must have been pretty bad for a doctor to book him off for so long. Another employee had pain in his face; another took two days off because of acne. Another employee received two days sick leave because of the effects he had suffered after receiving a human bite. One employee was given two days off because he was scared of cancer, fortunately though, he didn’t actually have cancer,” he notes.

Johnson says that nothing depicts the human condition better than reading the reasons for absenteeism on sick notes.

“We all have times when we are off ill and we all need understanding and compassion, even if those reasons are obscure. Doctors also face the challenge of caring for their patient while as the same time, honestly giving the reasons that this person has not attended work. The human resource or line manager must also show compassion for the myriad of often-strange excuses that their employees provide when they return to work.”

Johnson explains that by monitoring employee absenteeism and the reasons for it, managers can quickly see who the absenteeism abusers are.

“Mostly we find that employees, who are absent regularly, often on the same day of the week, and for short periods of two days or less, are abusing the system. Knowing who these employees are goes a long way towards fixing the problem. They can be counseled, placed on wellness management programmes and disciplined if necessary. By identifying trends in absenteeism and instituting return to work counseling sessions and wellness management programmes companies can drastically reduce the instances of sick leave abuse, and hopefully see less bizarre reasons for employee absenteeism,” he adds.