Worker absenteeism is symptom of complex issues

The provocative question of whether worker absenteeism is caused by a manager's incompetence pushes us to consider its direct impact on employee behavior.

- REY ELBO

For example, when one department exhibits a significantly higher absenteeism rate, say at 20 percent compared to similarly situated departments at an average of three percent, the former department strongly indicates its problem.

It could be that their department is running on tobacco fumes—high on smoke, low on productivity. Absenteeism, in this context, is a symptom of deeper issues such as low employee morale, disengagement, stress and burnout, which are often caused by the manager, wittingly or unwittingly.

It is crucial to understand that absenteeism is a controllable issue that ultimately rests with each department head working through their line executives. At the same time, the human resources department may offer solutions, but effective implementation hinges on the concerned department manager. That's assuming that the concerned manager doesn't automatically blame the workers.

This blame-shifting is a common occurrence, often without the organization equally holding the manager accountable. It's the classic "dog ate my homework" excuse, but with more spreadsheets and less actual homework. Imagine if that extends to other problems like a high turnover rate.

The Deming Principle

W. Edwards Deming (1900-1993), a renowned American statistician and management expert, famously stated that "workers are responsible for 10 to 20 percent of the quality problems in a factory, and that the remaining 80 to 90 percent is under management's control." This is a universal principle we can't ignore.