How 'Presenteeism' Affects Productivity

Essentially, 'presenteeism' is the opposite of absenteeism. Instead of not coming to work, employees show up at work while they are sick and not functioning at their full potential. Even though they are physically present, they might as well be absent because they are unable to work efficiently.

Attempting to work while sick reduces productivity and can be costly for the company. Some estimates claim U.S. businesses lose between $150 and $250 billion each year due to presenteeism. There are several things you can do to increase productivity at your company and keep employees from coming to work while under the weather. One way is to change the corporate culture. You can do this by encouraging sick employees to stay home.

(Curated from Pittsburgh Business Times)

"Corporate culture and management style have a big impact on employee behavior. In some organizations, employees who work when they are sick are viewed as dedicated and loyal to the company. In other cases, employees may avoid taking time off because they are concerned about workloads, overburdening coworkers or even losing their jobs. Supervisors unknowingly encourage presenteeism when they praise employees who come into the office sick or discourage staff from missing work for any reason.”

You can also establish wellness programs to prevent presenteeism. By creating a program focused on the health of your employees, they will know you care about their well-being. This will create a healthy, productive corporate culture and encourage workers to lead a healthy lifestyle, which will result in less sick days.

“Healthier employees not only lead to enhanced productivity, including fewer sick days, but also become a more engaged workforce. Establishing an employee wellness program may help workers focus on their health, which can lead to the prevention of serious illnesses and other conditions that impact productivity. Programs promoting exercise, good nutrition, health assessments, counseling services or free flu shots can pay for themselves by boosting productivity and reducing company health care costs over time.”

Providing a safe environment for your workers to take off time when needed is essential to productivity. No one can work at full capacity while feeling unwell or stressing about their sick child at home. How does your company handle presenteeism?

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