By Laura Pokrzywa, Human Resources Consultant
Most employers wrestle with attendance issues. Whether it’s employees who are chronically tardy, rolling in anywhere from 15 minutes late to hours past their start time, or employees who habitually call off at the last minute. Some employees may offer excuses (car trouble, childcare needs, family emergency, heavy traffic, etc.). Others seem unconcerned about missing a little work time and make no excuses.
Unfortunately, the pandemic added fuel to this fire. As workplaces phase out COVID-era policies that allowed flexible work arrangements, including work-from-home, many are feeling friction from employees who are now expecting greater flexibility with scheduling and remote work options.
Whatever the reason, chronic tardiness and absences place a tremendous burden on the company, reducing productivity and negatively impacting the morale of employees who are left to take up the slack.
What Can Employers Do?
A. Have a clear policy. The best way to address attendance violations is to carefully and consistently enforce the policy you have. Your policy should clearly define expectations for advance notification of a planned absence and the preferred procedure for calling off at the last minute. If your organization uses a points system, the policy should establish how points are accrued and disciplinary steps that will be applied as those accruals increase.
B. Enforce the policy consistently. If your policy is not consistently enforced across the entire organization, the company is exposed to increased liability in the form of discrimination and/or wrongful termination claims. In addition, if it is not enforced consistently, employees who consider scheduled hours to be more of a suggestion than a requirement will feel even less compelled to respect your attendance policy. But your troubles won’t stop there. Inconsistent enforcement of one policy often leads to loss of confidence in other company policies.
C. Train supervisors. Don’t assume all supervisors will follow your policy. Train them to ensure they all understand the policy and know how to enforce it. Train them, also, to watch for situations which may trigger the need for reasonable accommodations or a leave of absence.
D. Communicate with employees. Talk with them long before they reach “the final straw” that will result in termination. If their attendance is becoming a problem, let them know so that they have a chance to correct. Be sure to document all conversations and discipline.
E. Be aware of federal and state laws that may apply:
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If the absence or tardiness is due to certain medical or family issues, it may be covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), or some other state or local law. In such cases, disciplining the employee could result in a violation of the applicable law.
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If the absence or tardiness is due to the employee’s voluntary participation in emergency response, jury duty, voting on Election Day, attendance as a witness in court, or some other voluntary or civic duty, it may be covered by a state or local law.
In both cases, disciplining an employee for missing work time could result in a violation of applicable law. For this reason, employers need to be very careful when implementing “no fault” attendance policies in which employees accrue points for absences without regard to the reason for the absence.
Need Help?
If you are an employer with questions about attendance issues or any other HR issue, contact our Risk Management Division by phone at 855-873-0374 or by email at . We will be happy to help!