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Why is 'presenteeism' a bigger threat to work productivity than 'absenteeism'?

We are all familiar with those individuals who come into work but are not actually present in the...
Newstalk
Newstalk

16.31 29 Jul 2014


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Why is 'presenteeism&a...

Why is 'presenteeism' a bigger threat to work productivity than 'absenteeism'?

Newstalk
Newstalk

16.31 29 Jul 2014


Share this article


We are all familiar with those individuals who come into work but are not actually present in the sense they are not overly engaged in their work or as productive as they could be.

We know that absenteeism costs the Irish economy €1.5bn per annum or €818 per employee according to the IBEC Employee Absenteeism Report of 2011. But do we know what presenteeism costs the Irish economy?

Presenteeism is a concept used to describe the phenomenon of working through illness and injury which can in turn negatively impact on work. These employees may want to be more engaged but because of a variety of factors they find it difficult to do so.

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In recent times, given the economic downturn, many employees are genuinely glad to have a job and will do whatever they can to hold on to it. They do this to "positively manage their profile" in the hope of minimising any potential negative implications on themselves should restructuring talks arise.

As a consequence the recession appears to have led to reduced level of absenteeism from 3.38 percent to 2.58 per cent according to this year’s IBEC Employee Absenteeism Management Report. It is ironic, that the reduced absenteeism rate may have significantly increased presenteeism on the job or in other words loss of productivity.

The most prevalent and newest forms of presenteeism are evident to those of us with our fingers on the pulses of large organisations. Do you recognise one of the potential causes in your organisation - namely the "Few Too Many" persona?

The "Few Too Many" - What's that all about?

Many of us may have been guilty of having that extra glass of wine on a school night and consequently not performing at peak level the next day.

We do not need research statistics to tell us that the effects of alcohol are proving a grave problem for our society. It is all around us. People in times of stress, particularly economic stress turn to alcohol as a form of release and to help them "cope".

Dr David Stuckler who is King’s College Cambridge sociology lecturer and Yale health policy and economics graduate addressed a conference organised by equality think tank TASC. His message was as follows: “What happens in the economy matters for our health.”

Mr Stuckler points out that the more rapid the economic changes in a country, the bigger the impact on that nation’s health. “We found that those countries that implemented very rapid economic changes had greater rises in suicides, homicides, heart attacks and alcohol-related deaths,” he says.

These changes in society will naturally be manifested in our workplace. In such countries, Stuckler pointed out that increased consumption of alcohol and its negative side effects was common.

Again we do not need statistics to understand how a "Few Too Many" can be a significant cause of presenteeism. According to the Health Research Board's June 2014 study on alcohol, when figures are applied to the population of Irish drinkers we spent more than €50.6m on alcohol in the week prior to the study and 3,230 work-or-study years were lost through alcohol related illness in the year prior to the study.

The Health Research Board report also reveals we underestimate what we drink by about 60%. Binge drinking has become "normalised". The World Health Organisation classify binge drinking as more than 6 units in one sitting. According to the report's finding:

  • One in five (21.1%) drinkers engaged in binge drinking at least once a week.
  • More than half (54%) of 18-75 year old drinkers were classified as harmful drinkers which equates to 1.35 million harmful drinkers in Ireland. 
  • One third (33%) of men and more than one fifth (23%) of women who consumed alcohol in the week prior to the survey consumed more than the HSE low risk drinking guidelines of 16.8 standard drinks for men and 11.2 standard drinks for women. 
  • One in eight (13%) men and almost one in ten (9%) women drank their recommended weekly guidelines in one sitting in the week prior to the survey. 
  • Monthly binge drinking most common among 18-24 year old age group (at 60%).
  • Harmful drinking is highest among 18-24 year old age group (at 75%). 
  • Dependent drinking is highest among 18-24 year old age group (at 15%). 

These figures paint a worrying picture of not just productivity in some of our organisations but indeed of our country as a whole. Our lifestyle choices are not helping us deal with the challenges we face as a nation. In fact they are compounding those challenges.

In addition, they are making our day to day work even more challenging and no doubt contributing to increased presenteeism levels. So you might want to think twice about having that "one for the road" on a school night. It certainly won't do your career any favours not to mention your organisation.

If you or your company are dealing with presenteesim you might want to check out AFRESH who work with individuals and organisations to assist them make positive lifestyle choices to ensure they remain energised, motivated and productive. For more information contact them on info@afresh.ie or see www.afresh.ie


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