Presenteeism is heralded as a big problem in business as itâs something that can decrease an individualâs productivity or affect that of their co-workers as well.
Presenteeism, which is chiefly defined as employees who are not functioning at maximum capability due to illness, injury or another condition, could be helped if employees took time off when sick or vacation days to unwind. But the issue is not that simple. Reasons for presenteeism depend on many factors, whether itâs an individualâs attitude toward work, an employerâs workplace culture or the overall economic environment.
Employees taking time off bottomed out during the Great Recession. Over the past decade, the numbers havenât recovered, said Steve Koepp, former Time Inc. editor and founder of From Day One, a Brooklyn-based conference series focused on creating a more collaborative, empathetic and productive workplace.
The United States is the only country without mandated vacation or sick leave. If the nation doesnât set the tone that time off is important, it doesnât trickle down to companies, Koepp said.
There are some things companies can do to address presenteeism, based on the reasons why employees are not taking time off.
Company Culture
Employees may face barriers to taking time off if the company has overt or subtle ways to vacation-shame employees, Koepp said. If a manager responds to a request for time off with a negative response like, âBut this is the worst time,â that may have a âchilling effectâ on future requests, he said. In unhealthy workplace environments, an employee may return from a vacation only to hear from their manager that something stressful would not have happened if the employee had been at work.
âCompanies should lay out some structure, and not just about the number of weeks but about how managers should handle the request, the return and everything about it,â Koepp said.
Leadership expert and coach Jack Skeen shared other ways to address presenteeism. Managers can help create an environment where people feel comfortable taking time off, perhaps by taking time off and talking to employees about how they used it.
Skeen had further suggestions for employees anxious that their career, salary or reputation could be tarnished by using paid time off. The crux of the matter is that you canât convince people of anything if thereâs not trust in the employee-management relationship, he said. That trust is key to delivering PTO-friendly messages successfully.
Skeen suggests that employers clearly and repeatedly tell employees that PTO is encouraged, supported and respected. Employers can share stories about employees who both used PTO and were promoted.
For formal vacation and sick-day policies, Skeen said that they must be fair to everyone in the company, from the frontline workers to the executives at the top. Also, employers should make sure that the policy is clear, specific and not open to excessive interpretation.
Tom Parry, president for the Integrated Benefits Institute, a nonprofit focused on research and benchmarking the link between health and productivity, agreed that trust between the employer and employee is paramount.
âEmployees have to trust their employer. If they donât trust their employer, if they have that culture that lacks trust, then youâve got a problem [bigger than presenteeism],â he said.
Also read: Eggnog With a Splash of Paid Time Off
Given the vast number of reasons employees donât take time off, Parry said itâs important to survey employees anonymously to determine whatâs standing in the way.
Reasons to Support Time Off
The institute seeks to quantify the impact of presenteeism, Parry said. Absenteeism is visible but presenteeism often isnât, he stressed. While managers can clearly see if an employee is not at work and estimate some business impact, itâs harder to quantify presenteeism.
IBI has done four studies with CFOs in recent years, Parry said. Conceptually, they understand the link between presenteeism and business impact. Practically, though, they wonât take action unless thereâs data.Â
The most important takeaway for employers is to consider the forces outside of their company, Parry said. âWhat happens a lot of time is we take employers out of that economic and business circumstance that theyâre in,â he said.
When an employer is thinking about its individual business, long-term thinking is key alongside short-term opportunities.
âYou have to be willing to bite the bullet and maybe not take advantage of every business opportunity if itâs going to have a long-term effect on your workforce,â Parry said.