Presenteeism

There is so much in the news at the moment about sick days and absenteeism and the cost it has on businesses. Today I came across a new word 'presenteeism' which apparently refers to the issues that occur when sick employees still turn up to work in the belief that they will either get into some sort of trouble for not being there, or that they are so vital to the running of the business that they cannot be absent.

It's all rather timely as I am currently sitting at home in my slippers, wrapped up warm and surrounded by tissue boxes and hot lemon drinks as I try to fight off flu like symptoms. I'm sure my colleagues are grateful I'm not in the office coughing and spluttering my germs at them!

And funnily enough I've got through just as much work, if not more, as I would have done had I been in the office. Granted, some meetings have had to be shifted around, but with access to my emails there is very little I haven't been able to make progress on.

Hopefully with one day at home, I'll be in a much better position to return to work tomorrow.

How does your business manage when you or your employees are sick - would you prefer people to come in or stay away? Let us know your thoughts and any tips or advice you have on how to handle this situation.

You can also check out this article on presenteeism.