Planning as a Small Business

For the last 15 weeks, I have been following the Slimming World healthy approach to eating.  At times it has been extremely hard as I associate nice times with food.  I’ve given up wine as well (and I did love my glass of bubbly) but the positive impact it has had on my health has … Read more

How to deal with Employee Attendance Issues as a Small Business

How to Deal with Employee Atendance Issues as a Small Business

Are you sitting comfortably? Welcome to my series of podcasts that will help you to navigate those inevitable difficult events at work that are part of being a small business owner

Today I want to talk about employee attendance.

When you run your own business, you might feel like you spend a lot of type firefighting and solving workplace issues as they arise. Whether it’s dealing with an underperforming employee or interpersonal conflict, the buck stops with you, and like many workplace issues, some have a more significant effect on a small business.

Absenteeism is no exception.  While it’s true that people get sick, emergencies happen and you should make allowances for this, if absenteeism becomes a habit, it has to be dealt with. Once it becomes a habit, or it’s seen as an accepted behaviour, it can be more difficult to deal with.

So what are the effects of absenteeism on business performance?

Firstly, employees who are frequently absent become a financial burden, whether it’s because of reduced productivity or the cost of bringing in someone to replace them temporarily. Their absence also affects morale when other employees are burdened with extra work.

Absenteeism also affects continuity. It can be hard to continue business as usual if you have to hire temporary staff and you’re unsure of their exact skill set and how quickly they will adapt to your ways of working.

I spoke about how absenteeism affects the morale of other employees; it actually does more than this. It can reduce the performance of other employees who might resent the fact that the absent employee is ‘getting away’ with being absent so frequently, and they might even try to play the system themselves.

But the absent employee can actually harm their career by being absent. An employee is hired because of their qualifications and experience, which in most cases, they are expected to develop in their time with the business. How much can a frequently absent employ be expected to develop in a way that will help your business grow?

Finally, absenteeism is a common cause of workplace conflict. If some employees are disgruntled at having to cover for others all of the time, this can cause open conflict and resentment. This can make for a tense and much less productive working environment.

How can you deal with attendance issues?

The first step is to make sure you have an attendance policy. You might not have a big HR department to deal with these issues for you, but you can put down in writing exactly what you expect in terms of attendance at work, the procedure for reporting an absence, and the procedure for dealing with frequent or chronic absence.

In the policy, deal with different types of absences like sickness absence, scheduled absence (for an operation for example), unauthorised absence, and absence in special circumstances such as bereavement or a family emergency. Mention procedures for requesting or reporting an absence and also disciplinary measures that will be taken if appropriate. Make sure the policy is written clearly, it doesn’t need to be complicated. Your attendance policy should be readily available for employees to read, and they should sign it to say they have read and understood it. Make sure they know that attendance is a shared responsibility.

But it’s not enough to just have a policy filed away in a ring binder somewhere, make sure that you enforce it. Enforcement doesn’t mean that you can’t show some empathy when someone’s child falls ill, but make provision in the policy for situations where ‘emergencies’ become a regular occurrence. For example, you could state in your policy that you’ll have a review meeting with an employee who is absent for an emergency twice in a short space of time.

The next important thing is to keep track of absences. It’s a good idea to use a time-keeping system, an employee performance tool, or a spreadsheet which allows you to see absences at a glance. This will help you to see if one-off absences are becoming a pattern. Make sure you record the reasons for absence too as this will help if you have to resort to disciplinary action.

Emergencies can happen and employees can need time off at short notice, but if an employee simply doesn’t turn up for work, address the issue as soon as possible. Try to establish communication with them and when they return to work, meet with them to talk about what happened and what is expected of them if they need time off in the future. If necessary, decide on an action plan with them which will help reinforce that you have noticed their absence or absences and that it impacts negatively upon the business.

If you do notice patterns of absence like if an employee calls in sick frequently on a Monday or a Friday, confront them with your documented evidence and try to find out why their absences fall on certain days. Don’t be accusatory. Go in with an open mind; there might be a valid reason why an employee calls in sick on certain days. Do they have trouble getting childcare on certain days, or do they have caring responsibilities for a relative? Work with them to get to the bottom of it. Could you do anything to make their working hours more flexible? It can be more difficult to accommodate needs when you’re a small business, but it can be worth the effort if it helps a valued employee.

Remember too that it’s not just about punishing poor attendance, rewarding good attendance and performance is important. When employees feel appreciated, they tend to work harder for the business and stay loyal. Why not start a quarterly attendance reward scheme, where those with the best attendance get some kind of token to show they are recognised and appreciated?

Dealing with attendance issues is never easy and you might not be able to prepared for every potential attendance scenario, but if you have a clear and fair attendance policy, track attendance patterns, address absenteeism promptly, have a plan of action for excessive absence, and reward good attendance, hopefully you’ll see a marked reduction in absence which affects your bottom line.

I hope that you got some good tips from today’s podcast, and I’ll see you next time for the next one in the series.

This is The People Mentor, signing off.

Why Your Business Needs a Performance Management System

Whether big or small, the most successful businesses balance achieving their goals with managing and developing their employees. But small businesses, in particular, can benefit from having a performance management system in place because having motivated, engaged, and loyal employees at the heart of the business are even more essential to success. What is performance … Read more

Why Your Small Business Needs an Employee Handbook

When you employ staff, it’s important to have your policies and procedures in one convenient document that can be referred back to, time and time again. The easiest way you can do this is by giving your employees a handbook, which tells them what is expected of them, shows them that you’re fair and want … Read more

How to Deal with Confrontational Employees as a Small Business Owner

 

Are you sitting comfortably? Welcome to my Workplace series of podcasts that will help you to navigate those inevitable difficult events at work that are part of being a small business owner, Manager & Leader.  Today I want to talk about how to deal with a confrontational employee.

Confrontational and antagonistic employees are a drain on the energy and resources that should be used to run a successful business. These types of employees range from those who are passive-aggressive to those who are basically bullies. Either way, their behaviour can cause problems with working relationships and can even lead to more serious situations such as physical violence, which, it goes without saying, can all have a huge impact on a business and its people. This is why you must deal with hostile situations sooner rather than later before they become much more serious.

The confrontational person will likely annoy you more if the rest of your team gets on well and they always do their best for you and the business but don’t lose your composure, even though it may be tempting because there are ways to deal with a confrontational employee.

There is a caveat here though, confrontational behaviour should not be tolerated, especially if it’s coupled with threats of physical violence, or the behaviour is causing you or someone else emotional harm or distress. If this is the case, you’ll have grounds to terminate an employee’s employment. You must protect yourself, your other employees, and your premises. In cases of physical threats or intimidation, always inform the police.

So back to the steps you can take as a business owner, firstly, let the employee know that they can speak to you about any issues they might have. If there’s an underlying reason for them being confrontational or hostile, such as frustration with a work situation, you’ll have a chance to nip it in the bud.

When you do speak to them, be understanding but be firm. Explain that they need to be professional in the workplace and make sure that they understand how their behaviour is affecting you, the team, and the business.

It’s a good idea to note down instances where the employee’s behaviour has been hostile, whether it’s a complaint from another employee or they’ve been openly confrontational with you. This way, when you speak to them about their behaviour, you’ll have facts and they won’t feel as if you are just coming up with accusations (which is likely to make them even more confrontational).

Another good tip is to keep your feelings out of it. Even though it’s hard to deal with people who are difficult, it’s important to be objective and professional. There may be a reason for the hostility that the employee thinks is completely justifiable in his or her mind, and nothing is going to be solved if you engage in a shouting match.

Next, think about how you can help in any way. Maybe the employee has underlying issues or something stressful going on in their personal life that is causing them to overreact to situations at work. Let them know that you are available to talk and suggest counselling or other sources of help if it’s appropriate. This is a better bet than losing a good employee, who even though they can be antagonistic, might add value to your business.

Confrontation can’t always be avoided, but it can be managed-sometimes. If your employee refuses to work with you or other employees to improve the situation (and his or her behaviour), written and verbal warnings, eventually leading to termination of their employment may be the only solution you have left.

You owe it to yourself and your other employees to create a positive, productive, and harmonious working atmosphere, so if you know that you have given a confrontational employee every chance to improve their behaviour and they’ve failed to do so, you’ll have to make a hard, but necessary choice.

I hope that you got some good tips from today’s podcast, and I’ll see you next time for the next one in the series.

This is The People Mentor, signing off.