With the dramatic victories for both Ulster and Leinster in the Semi-Finals of the Heineken Cup, setting up an all Irish tie in Twickenham, to be shortly followed by the Euro 2012 Championships, the London Olympics and then All Ireland GAA Championships, Irish Employers may face a potential issue with employee absenteeism over the coming months.
Whilst the feel good value that Sport brings to a society and the country overall cannot be overstated, the knock on effects of this on a Company must also be taken into consideration. Employers may be faced with an increase in requests for annual leave over the coming weeks and months, and an increase in absenteeism may also be a side effect of the heroism of our sporting icons.
With regard to the question of an increase of annual leave requests, employers should have a well thought out and communicated annual leave policy in place to ensure that employees give plenty of notice to employers for any leave, and also that the business continues to function during any leave periods. Minimum staffing levels will need to be maintained during leave periods, and this may necessitate no more than one person from a particular department being on leave at a particular time, and the possibility of refusing requests from employees if others have already requested these days. Remember, Annual Leave must be agreed by both the employee and the employer, if it does not meet the Company's needs an employer is well within their rights to refuse any request or postpone it for a more suitable date.
If an employer finds themselves with an increase in absenteeism around a large sporting occasion it is important for an employer to ensure that any absence is compliant with Company policy. Whilst an employer should exercise a degree of caution when interviewing employees following any absence, it is equally important to ensure that employees are aware that any absence will be followed by a return to work meeting with their Line Manager to discuss the absence.
Absenteeism can put an undue burden on remaining employees, so it is essential to try to reduce absenteeism Company wide, and return to work interviews are an essential component of this. Return to work interviews can reduce absenteeism by as much as 40-50% so Line Managers should be prepared to meet with returning employees to discuss their absence and establish if the absence was genuine. Unauthorised absence can result in disciplinary action for an employee and so whilst the major sporting occasions can bring a feel good factor, it should not be at the expense of the smooth running of the business.
Employers can come up with more creative ways of ensuring that historic sporting moments are not missed, such as allowing a radio playing at work or potentially setting up a television set up in a break room, and so try to avoid employees taking unauthorised time off from work and disrupting the business.
With the dramatic victories for both Ulster and Leinster in the Semi-Finals of the Heineken Cup, setting up an all Irish tie in Twickenham, to be shortly followed by the Euro 2012 Championships, the London Olympics and then All Ireland GAA Championships, Irish Employers may face a potential issue with employee absenteeism over the coming months.
Whilst the feel good value that Sport brings to a society and the country overall cannot be overstated, the knock on effects of this on a Company must also be taken into consideration. Employers may be faced with an increase in requests for annual leave over the coming weeks and months, and an increase in absenteeism may also be a side effect of the heroism of our sporting icons.
With regard to the question of an increase of annual leave requests, employers should have a well thought out and communicated annual leave policy in place to ensure that employees give plenty of notice to employers for any leave, and also that the business continues to function during any leave periods. Minimum staffing levels will need to be maintained during leave periods, and this may necessitate no more than one person from a particular department being on leave at a particular time, and the possibility of refusing requests from employees if others have already requested these days. Remember, Annual Leave must be agreed by both the employee and the employer, if it does not meet the Company's needs an employer is well within their rights to refuse any request or postpone it for a more suitable date.
If an employer finds themselves with an increase in absenteeism around a large sporting occasion it is important for an employer to ensure that any absence is compliant with Company policy. Whilst an employer should exercise a degree of caution when interviewing employees following any absence, it is equally important to ensure that employees are aware that any absence will be followed by a return to work meeting with their Line Manager to discuss the absence.
Absenteeism can put an undue burden on remaining employees, so it is essential to try to reduce absenteeism Company wide, and return to work interviews are an essential component of this. Return to work interviews can reduce absenteeism by as much as 40-50% so Line Managers should be prepared to meet with returning employees to discuss their absence and establish if the absence was genuine. Unauthorised absence can result in disciplinary action for an employee and so whilst the major sporting occasions can bring a feel good factor, it should not be at the expense of the smooth running of the business.
Employers can come up with more creative ways of ensuring that historic sporting moments are not missed, such as allowing a radio playing at work or potentially setting up a television set up in a break room, and so try to avoid employees taking unauthorised time off from work and disrupting the business.
