Cause Of Absenteeism In An Organization Management Essay

Employees often care about absenteeism as it cost them not anything. The worst it can cost them is their job but for the employer or the organization the employee is attached with. Its means problems or loss money.

Every year several organizations are paying high price for absenteeism..The major cost often comes from the fact that the organization that is bearing high level of absenteeism has to quickly hire a replacement employee and train them. Quick alternative and training equals spending of money and time. If an organization is facing a high level of absenteeism. It means there is a bit wrong with an organization. In order to reduce high level of absenteeism as a manager it is necessary to identify what is the cost of high level of absenteeism in an organization. It means identifying the organization as well as individual factors influencing absenteeism. When we discuss about an organizational factors influencing absenteeism its mean workplace and work satisfaction. Place of work involves the environment as well as the culture or practices practiced at workplace. These are often related to the conditions the employees experience daily during their working hours.

Cause of absenteeism in an organization.

Serious accident and illness.

Serious accident and illness are main causes of absenteeism because if an employee had an accident and these situations are not preplanning because no one knows that when he is going to be ill or what is happing next, so in such situations worker some times cannot report to office due to an emergency that causes absenteeism.

Low moral

One of the main reason that causes absenteeism is low moral people are not due to poor leadership and management employees are not motivated so their moral comes down, and the worker takes no interest in job and in the end that causes absenteeism in an organization.

Poor working condition

Poor environment or poor working conditions both can cause absenteeism, due to unusual situation like no health and safety, unhygienic environment employee feel unsecure and that causes less interest in job. So in such conditions no one shows his interest.

Low job satisfaction

There are many reasons causes absenteeism in an organization in which poor job satisfaction is one of them. if employees are not satisfied with the working environment and they don not feel either their job is secure or not in such situation employee feel unsatisfied their jobs in the end results shows that employee take lake of interest in jobs because they are not sure that their job is permanent.

Insufficient leadership and poor supervision

Due to poor supervision and insufficient leadership employee feel unsecure their jobs. Managers play an important role to achieve organization’s goals. If the leadership is not good and their behaviour towards employees is not fair that all the structure of organization fails. If supervisors and leaders are not cooperative with the staff than workers takes less interest in their jobs employee feel fear to go their jobs and that causes absenteeism.

Personal problems

Personal problems causes absenteeism, those can be martial, financial, child care, substance abuse etc. every one have different in their life style, if some one have financial problem he need some money to solve his domestic problems and the pay he gets from his employee is not sufficient to fulfil one’s domestic needs and wants and some times their may be a personal problems and some times there are a lot of problems can be caused by children. Some times people have their martial issues to solve so in such situations man cannot give his availability to employer these are one the major things caused absence of work.

Poor physical fitness

Every one needs to be a healthy and fit physically no one likes to be a week. For if some one is healthy than its mean he or she is fit for doing any work. For an organization it is necessary to have their all employee physically and mentally fit to do progressive job. If some one is not physically and mentally fit that means he is not fit for job as well. Physically and mentally fitness plays an important part to survive, this is major cause absence of job.

Work load

Within an organization there are different types of methods are used to achieve their tasks. These methods effects on employees, every management have their own style to involve their employee in task and to get impressive performance. Some times burden of work creates bad impression which causes low interest on job. Employee feel burden on his shoulder and in the end when there becomes workload on job he makes excuses to go to job.

Stress on job

There are many reasons which cause stress such as family problems financial problems, bad health and stress on job. Several large global insurance companies regularly conduct nationwide survey to assess the amount of job stress experienced by people at all levels in all types of organizations. Stress in every way may effect on employees within organization and in such situation no one likes to go to work that cause absenteeism.

Transport problem

As we have discussed many reasons cause absence of job we can say that transport problem can be one of them. Every one cannot afford personal conveyance for travelling. Mostly people use public transport for their routine travelling. If the transport system is poor than it no one can say that man can reach every where according to their schedule.

Measured and preventing absence

There are some steps need to be taken for preventing absence in an organization. Management must know about their employees needs and wants, all the managers should be trained and the must be able to communicate with the workers and help them to achieved their tasks.

Motivation

It is necessary for managers to consider the importance of motivation, because it stimulates employee behaviour to achieve organizational goals. In many ways employee’s motivation and performance provides the firm’s day to day support for competitive advantages .motivation sustains our behaviour keeps it systematic and it assembles and concentrates out attentions to achieve goals we value, managers who ignore established principles of motivation will foul up their operations because they will fail at the crucial task of linking the firm’s goals to the behaviour of their employee.

What stimulates human behaviour?

Human behaviour rests on needs and motives. A need is an experience state of deficiency that pushes one’s behaviour. Examples of needs are hunger thirst and belongingness. A motive achievement, power, greed, pulls human behaviour towards a goal that is predicted or anticipated. For example one may need a pay raise to cover the cost of his summer holidays. He begins to work harder at his job with the knowledge that pay raise decisions will be made four months before his scheduled summer departure. He comes to work on time, avoids taking sick leave and work more closely with his fellow workers. He will engage in all of these behaviours with the hope that management trigger a raise. His behaviour is thus pulled along by his performance motive.

Understanding needs, behaviours and motives

Need.

Pay raise for pay for summer holidays.

Behaviour

Increased work output.

No absenteeism.

No lateness.

Improved cooperation with co workers.

High work quality.

Better customer service

Motive

High performance on the job to obtain merit pay raise.

Content theory Maslow’s hierarchy

Abraham Maslow motivation could be explained by organising human needs into five levels. He made his theory sufficiently broad to address human behaviour in all settings. Hus theory was quickly applied to the narrower range of human behaviour in organizational settings.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Self actualization

The need to reach one’s fullest potential

2. Esteem

The need to feel good about oneself and one’s abilities, and to be respected by others and to receive their approval

3. Belongingness

The need to experience social interaction, friendship and love

4. Safety

Need for security stability and a safe work environment

5. Physiological

Food, water, shelter and clothing to ensure survival

Physiological needs are the lowest level of needs in the hierarchy they include hunger thirst, shelter and sex (reproduction). In today’s world these needs rarely dominate obsess us. Maslow states that physiological must be satisfied first. For example some one concern about a business meeting will suddenly disappears if he arrives home to se his house is flames. His motivational base will shift dramatically to saving his family and his laptop computer it contains his business files. Safety needs are protection against danger threat or deprivation and they are activated next. These are the guarantees that we want in our lives and from our work. Safety needs are tied strongly to physiological needs because meeting safety needs ensures continuity and certainty for fulfilment of the basic needs.

Herzberg’s two factor theory of motivation

A content theory of work motivation which is closely related to Maslow’s hierarchy is Professor Herzberg’s two factors theory or motivator hygiene theory. In his study on accountants and engineers Herzberg discovered that the reason these professionals gave for experiencing motivation was quite different. His discovery is surmised in following figure.

Figure shows that employee motivation and job satisfaction range from un motivated dissatisfaction resentment to neutral indifferent complacence to motivation satisfaction with the job. The level of experienced job motivation satisfaction depends on the availability of hygiene’s and motivators shown on the diagram, from the diagram shows that hygiene’s pay, status, peers supervision, working conditions and job benefits by them selves or insufficient to sustain motivation and satisfaction. the various motivators must also be present to sustain the employees motivation and satisfaction. This diagram also shows that the absence of hygiene factors leads to job dissatisfaction, but when present, hygiene factors don’t necessarily provide job satisfaction. in contrast, the presence of motivators does lead to job satisfaction if the hygiene’s are already in place.

Benefit of Herzberg’s work

Herzberg’s has influenced thinking in organizational behaviour and management. its most enduring benefit is its focus on the effects of the company systems and job design on employee’s motivation and job satisfaction. Job design refers to how work is structured and how much employees control their work decisions. Before Herzberg’s theory employee motivation was through to be a simple function of pay extrinsic rewards. He also clarified the motivation satisfaction puzzle by farming the differing between hygiene’s and motivators as well as their differing effects on satisfaction and motivation.

Expectancy theory of motivation

The expectancy theory of motivation was developed by professor Tolman. He realised that behaviour is always purposeful and goal directed and it could only be understood in terms of the probabilities that a given behaviour will lead to outcomes valued by the individual. Professor Vroom of Yale University applied Tolman’s ideas to employee behaviour and expectancy theory was born. It is now a leading explanation for employee behaviours such as.

Turn over

Absenteeism

Joining a new organization

Career choice

Performance and leadership effectiveness

Components of expectancy theory

Valance is defined as personal attractiveness of different outcomes. If an out come such as a promotion has positive valence, then the employee is strongly motivated by behaviours that he thinks will make that outcome more likely. Negative valence is attached to undesirable outcomes and it suggests avoidance behaviours to the employee. Thus being censured publicly by the boss is negatively valent for most employees.

Outcomes in expectancy theory

Expectancy theory has two classes of outcome. First level outcomes are the result of expending effort in some directed way. Important first level outcomes at work would be job performance coming to work late leaving or accepting a position and working at home. These outcomes are important to organizations and they have profound effects on employees. Second level outcomes occur after first level outcomes and are the direct result of achieving or not achieving. First level outcomes. Example of second level outcomes includes getting a promotion being transferred receiving recognition obtaining a pay rise and attending training programme. Employee assigns valences to each type of outcome.

Extending expectancy theory to the individual and the organization

Expectancy theory can help managers to understand their subordinates and the organization they work in. the individual need for achievement is a personal trait which influences effort instrumentality and expectancy. The achieving employee believes his performance can and should be high and he is willing to expend much effort on the job if it challenges and increase his skills and abilities. If the achieving the individual believes the organization reward performance then his instrumentalities will be high and positive. If the achieving employee believes the organization does not equitably reward performance then he will probably leave. Remember every frustrated employee with a high need for achievement is potential competitor.

Stress on job and manage with stress

According to North West insurance company they did survey on 45000 people 70% people said that their jobs are stressful extremely, 35% said they have work burden which causes stress 29% said special task on their work is stressful for them and also management is unfair with them, 31% said that they have stress causes by their fellow workers those not help them out, 61% said that they do not have fully work authority. After examine this report we can say that stress on job causes low interest on job and also absenteeism in an organization.

Causes and consequences of stress

Dr. Kenneth Cooper 1985 of the famous cooper clinic identifies three categories of causes of job stress, environmental, organizational and individual, and three categories of consequences of job stress exist, physiological, psychological and behavioural.

Environmental stress contains three more categories.1.Economic uncertainty 2.political uncertainty 3.technological uncertainty

Environmental stress

Economic uncertainty

Due to economic uncertainty the nervousness of employees who believe their continued employment prospects are dimming. When companies struggle with declining profits caused by low cost global competitors they often compensate by downsizing. Reducing pay levels and shortening work hours. Employees start thinking that their jobs are on risk now. This situation cause stressful for employees.

Political uncertainty

Political uncertainty is more of the source of job stress in countries with unstable or repressive political systems, Sudan, Nigeria, Venezuela, north Korea etc. comparatively speaking workers in UK, Europe, Canada and the United States experience far less job stress induced by political uncertainty than their counter parts in middle east countries and the countries of Africa.

Technological uncertainty

Due to innovation new technologies are being introduced in every way of life as well as within the organizations. Every day new machineries new tools and systems are coming. It is necessary for an organization to adopt these new technologies because if firm or organization is not using proper equipment then they remain far away. Due to modern technology everyone is not able to understand and learn its mechanism so that cause stress for employees because it takes times to learn new things and employee’s interest on their work becomes less.

Organizational factor that create stress

1. Task demand

Task demands are potential stressors embedded in job. It includes the difficult schedules that cause imbalances between you work and home life, being isolated and extra work reporting to different managers, operating in vacuum little feedback about your performance and having insufficient sources to complete job. Most experts agree that variation in job stress lessons for employees whose job responsibilities match their authority (autonomy on the job).also employees report less stress if they can set their own work schedules and if they can perform promotions of their work from home.

2. Role demand

Role demand consists of the behaviours that we are required to exhibit on the job behaviour is our values and beliefs. Our personal philosophy elements of our philosophies and our behaviours may be challenged by supervisors peers clients and other. We may find that leads some employees to become whistle blowers those pull the lids off corporate scandals because they have been asked to take job actions that conflict with their values. Every manager has different way of work style if there is difference in between employee way of work and managers that causes role demand. This will cause stressful and in the end employee does not take interest as the result that causes absence.

3. Interpersonal demands

This kind of stress is called social stress caused by fellow workers. Lack of collaboration poor cooperation and low trust and support among members of a works group will create job stress for any group member. Dysfunctional interpersonal demands will be particularly stressful for employees those are affiliation oriented and place great value on harmonious group relations.

4. Organizational structure

If the rules in organization are so strict, and if there is theory X management system causes stressful for employee. If there is no chance of mistake and all the environment is stressful in such working conditions employee feel unsecure, because every one cannot work under pressure. Organization structure plays important role to deal with stress and cause of stress.

5. Organizational leadership

Organizational leadership plays important part to achieve organizational goals. If the leadership is not good than there might be less chance of success, good managers and supervisors always think for the workers and as well as for the benefits for the organization. In this way theory X and theory Y type of management keeps value of management style. If the managers are not polite or helpful for employee definitely the moral of the employees will fall down and they feel extra Burdon on their shoulders will cause stress being at work and they do not take interest on job because of stressful atmosphere cause of management.

6. Organizational life cycle

Like a product organization have stages from its beginning to decline stage. Organizational life cycle starts with establishment growth maturity and decline stage. Each stage produces a unique stress for employees.

Individual factors of stress

1. Family problem

Family problem may surface in the employee’s work. Divorce ageing parent’s children’s misbehaved significant other’s can all undermine employee’s performance on the job.

2. Financial problem

Financial problems create job stress for employees when they live beyond their earnings. If anyone having financial problem like bad debts loans bill payments than these condition cause stress on job employee does not take interest on work and in the end that causes absence of job.

Individual differences

1. Perception

Perception governs our reactions to stress because it influence out interpretations of reality. Ones personal thinking is called perception that can effect on job everyone have personal perception and different to another person. If some one’s perception is against his expectations than that creates negative effect which causes stress.

2. Job experience

Job experience can be one of the main cause stresses on job. If an employee have bad experience with the similar job than whenever he starts new job he feels stress. He will feel stress because he had been facing difficulties before.

3. Locus of control

People personal believes are called locus of control. Some people think that hard work is not necessary to get pay raised or promotion in the other hand some think if they do hard work than they will get pay raised. These people are called internalise and externalise according to the Professor Murphy he said after doing search he said, internalisers perceive their job less stressful than externalises.

Consequences of stress

Physiological symptoms

Headaches

High blood pressure

Heart disease

Behavioural symptoms

Absenteeism

Productivity level

Quitting the job

Psychological symptoms

Sleep disturbances

Depression

Low job satisfaction