Present and correct

What connects the Spanish, the Irish, the Dutch and the Brits but definitely excludes the Danes? Yes, I daresay … but in this case the answer is their attitude to 'sickies'. According to a survey by Aon Consulting, workers in the first group take more time off under false pretences than any other in Europe. More than 20% of them admit to feigning illness to get a day off whereas, at the other end of the scale, only 4% of the Danes do the same. It adds up to nearly a billion lost man hours at a cost of €40 billion. This analysis comes at a time when the overall rate of absence through sickness is falling in the UK. The latest information from the CBI shows that the average worker took 6.4 days off through sickness last year, the lowest number since 1987. Even so, it still costs the UK economy £17 billion. The public sector figures are higher than the private sector (8.3 days against 5.8 days) which is driving the CBI – not benevolently inclined towards the public sector at any time – to demand it shapes up to private sector standards pretty rapidly. The reality may be slightly more complicated than the figures suggest. The least charitable interpretation would be that UK employees still swing the lead more enthusiastically than most of their counterparts in mainland Europe, even though the threat of job cuts is making them less inclined to chance their arm today. On the other hand, would the figures be less damning if it was as easy to negotiate time off for personal reasons as it is in most Danish companies? Of course, there will always be persistent malingerers. But employers know who they are. After the redundancies of the last two years, fewer of them are around to infect general workplace morale and those remaining tend to be more wary of abusing the system. Aon's Peter Abelskamp makes two salient points: "56% of workers say they would not feel forced to take a day as sick leave if they could just be honest and have access to flexible working hours or 'social days'. Of course employers should also not ignore the fact that 15% of people say that more interesting work would keep them in the office." Or, presumably, on the shopfloor. It is therefore possible that businesses still experiencing high levels of non-medical absence should look hard at themselves before automatically blaming the employees. After all, UK industry is occasionally capable of flexibility: it geared itself up very effectively to prevent a wave of no-shows over the World Cup, with many companies offering shift-swaps or alternative working patterns. But how many have day-to-day policies in place to deal with school sports day or prize-giving? Be honest. Would you disappoint your child even if you suspected asking for time off would mark your card in uncertain times? Would you even ask if you thought your request would be refused? I know what I'd do. Of course work matters – but there's something wrong with you if it matters more than your youngster's happiness. And I wouldn't even feel bad about bunking off if I knew my managers could take time off without any fuss to support their own offspring – and are probably paid for it, too. Of course, absenteeism needs to be managed. In the short term, levels will probably fall if every absence (justified or otherwise) is regarded as a potential dereliction of duty. But in the long term, that will cause resentment, channel people's creativity into bucking the system and eventually encourage them to look elsewhere when/if the upturn comes. So it's worth looking at how some companies use practical alternatives to the cosh. Take the Vaillant Group's final assembly plant at Belper in Derbyshire. This producer of domestic boilers has seen its absence levels fall year-on-year from 4.1% in 2006 to a current level of 2.8% - well below both the industry and the regional norm. Although there is major competition for good workers in the area with, among others, Rolls-Royce and Toyota on the doorstep, the plant has no trouble finding and keeping its employees. Allan Harley, Belper's continuous improvement manager, says the solution is simple: "We are in direct competition but we offer working conditions that make people want to work here." He doesn't mean that people can expect an easy, unchallenging existence: "We also offer clear and concise views on what you can and can't do. People like to know what's right. If you turn up and work hard, you will be paid a good wage. But more than that – we will try to accommodate whatever time off you need." Ninety-nine percent of holiday requests are met for over 250 shopfloor employees. Even if it means, for instance, coping with 20% absence on August Bank holiday, the plant is prepared to backfill with trained agency staff if it has sufficient warning. It responded to a request from the workforce for an earlier Friday finish in the summer. By working half an hour longer Monday to Thursday, the second shift now finishes at 7.15pm and doesn't resume until 2.30pm on Monday. Harley says it's a two-way street: the shopfloor loves it, the plant meets its production target earlier in the week and Friday absences have dropped through the floor. "Changes like that have to be agreed by everybody – you can't have 50% working like that and half not." The emphasis is on fairness: "No one ever really wants to be told what to do but clear, visible and reasonable rules make them acceptable to everyone." Although a percentage of the bonus scheme can be lost for non-attendance, the majority of it is still linked to quality. Hospital appointments are paid for as long as there is a doctor's note: "We are there to help – we want healthy people in work." My prize-giving litmus test is simply no issue here. "We will take anything reasonable into account. You can swap shifts or have unpaid holiday or reduced time. The system we run means it can be approved really quickly by the team leader or manager. Unexcused absence is the worst – if you know someone is going to be out you can plan for it." Belper uses Kronos technology to give real-time workforce information, driving efficiency in areas of the plant from HR and payroll to logistics, assembly, manufacturing and maintenance. Harley believes that a good time and attendance (T&A) system is the bedrock for more flexible working. Take prize-giving again: "There are guidelines for this kind of thing but, because we have a measurable T&A system, we can see if – say – this is the sixth time it has happened in three months. It makes it easy to spot when the system is being abused. It gives transparency: if you have seven people off, you can see the effect on other areas. You can drill down to see what each shift is doing and what individuals are working on it. And it gives the overall picture to super users like the planning department or me." At a basic level, T&A lets Belper plan proactively to cope with peak holiday demands. But it also helps it respond to difficult individual situations considerately and practically. Harley knows some people simply can't work the standard shift patterns, often because of their home situation but can cope with a pattern of three weeks on and one week off. Until recently, Belper also had people on flexible retirement schemes with a shorter working week. It is likely Belper will revisit this soon both for employees' sake and to slow the business impact of an ageing workforce and the loss of valuable skills. Harley is also assessing a workable scheme for two women who both want to return from maternity leave to work flexible hours. The best answer looks like a job share, with the two working out the hours between them. T&A makes the administrative side of such informal arrangements very easy. Some employees are also registered carers of elderly relatives – a painful, draining juggling act that is often forgotten amidst the loud demands for child-friendly policies. "I know what they are facing and that they may need time off," he says. "We have a dedicated absence line which they can ring 24/7. It lets us help but also gives us a heads-up on planning. The more you put into this type of working, the more you will get out. You can never please 100% of the people – but your aim is to keep the majority as happy as you can. And it shows in the amount and quality of what you produce, the way they work and talk to each other, and the way they act." To Harley, there are two critical elements in successfully reducing absenteeism: firstly, a clear, concise absence policy that is understandable to all and, secondly, making sure it's enforced. And that means the same rules for everyone – manager, supervisor, shopfloor and agency worker alike. "It is a family-orientated business and we are very loyal to the workforce – but we expect them to be loyal back. We set high standards. The major part is making it clear that if you need help, we will provide it – but if you don't tell us, you will get yourselves in trouble." That means weekly meetings with heads of department to plan ahead and also to discuss infringements, any mitigating circumstances and resulting actions. Analysis of absence figures and underlying causes also helps to spot trends for general improvement both in healthcare management and redesigning the working environment. The plant always conducts return to work (RTW) interviews and will shortly be automating the process through Kronos. So when an employee comes back, a RTW form will go straight to the manager's inbox and the interview must be conducted within 24 hours. "It's for everyone's benefit," says Harley. "They may have come back after a wrist injury. The last thing you want to do is contribute to more time off by putting them on the wrong jobs. It's informal and it's open – so they can come with a friend or a union rep if they want." Belper runs the Bradford Formula, commonly used to measure absenteeism and calculate attendance scores, but only as a guideline "… to help people, not to punish them. But it doesn't always work – some people will always be on self-destruct." In those circumstances, disciplinary action is swift: using Kronos, Belper has a full log of absences, the causes and the remedial action taken including advice given and any offers of different work. Dr Fiona Robson at Newcastle Business School is an expert in this field and produced the CIPD's excellent Absence Management toolkit. She points out that the vast majority of people stay away for genuine reasons and managers need to remember that in designing their absence management strategies: "One approach is to focus on encouraging attendance rather than simply managing absence." Allan Harley puts it succinctly: "You try to do what you can to achieve a good work/life balance. It will be different for every person and it's not easy to achieve – but if you preach it, you have to live it," he maintains. "If you leave it just to managers, their targets will always be production, plan attainment and efficiency. Someone has to point out that if you haven't got a satisfied workforce, all three of those will suffer, too."