For your company, an employee missing work for a day must not be an issue of concern. However, if it becomes a regular thing, then you are at risk of impacting bottom lines. Most managers deal with frequent leaves in a stringent manner which could be more conducive to a positive work environment.

We understand that staff attendance is necessary to keep productivity and profits in control. There can be different reasons for absence, and as a project manager, it is essential to show compassion toward the individual circumstances of workers and laborers.

An organization has limited influence on the employees outside of work hours. An employer can’t deal with personal issues; however, if there is a significant employee attendance shortage, you must know how to improve employee attendance.

This article highlights ways to tackle the poor employee attendance issue.

Six ways to improve employee attendance

1. Tell employees about your expectation

The workplace environment determines the acceptance level of frequent employee absences. In companies, if absence from work is not getting enough attention from the managers, it can set a wrong precedence for workers and laborers.

Workers must know the employee attendance policy and the company’s expectations. For instance, in the construction industry, you must inform workers about the high-pressure environment when they join your workforce. Inform them that they can be expected to work long days when necessary.

Taking absences for anything other than family emergencies or illness is not acceptable. This is the right approach, as employees will understand what kind of workplace culture they are part of. This will set them on the right path to take a few absences.

2. Create a clear attendance policy

Most human resource managers wonder how to improve attendance in the workplace when too many workers are taking time off. The first administrative step towards improving staff attendance is to create and implement a clear attendance policy. Your company’s attendance policy must comprehensively describe the scope and expectations of the workers.

It must also include the procedure to ask for a leave and the consequences of poor attendance. Your company’s attendance policy can vary depending on the industry and workforce strength. We already have a detailed guide on how to create a worker-friendly attendance policy.

3. Look for causes of poor attendance

Poor attendance is not always an attitude problem but often a result of a more significant problem. If a worker needs to maintain good attendance, the managers and supervisors must determine the cause of poor attendance.

Apart from injury or illness, there can be other factors, such as conflict with co-workers or supervisors, or issues with the working environment, such as heavy workload, skill mismatch, absence of proper tools and resources, etc.

Before jumping to any disciplinary action, it is essential to explore improving employee attendance by fixing the underlying cause. Take your time to determine the root cause of poor attendance so you can take proper action under labor law.

4. Reward employees with good attendance

Appreciation and acknowledgment go a long way in encouraging workers to give their best at work. You create a positive work culture when you balance the consequences of poor attendance with good attendance rewards.

A simple reward program can take out the most significant roadblock, letting employees know that their punctuality and sincerity are being noticed. A reward program is enough for workers to keep doing what is expected – coming to work.

5. Offer flexibility in work schedule

Not feasible for all companies, but you can offer flexibility in their work schedule. For instance, you can create multiple shifts at your manufacturing company to allow workers to switch shift schedules if they have any personal requirements to attend to.

When workers have the flexibility to switch their shifts with co-workers and organically eliminate call-offs due to unexpected personal issues. Such flexibility should be properly documented and approved by the management so that workers can use it while managers can track and monitor such schedules.

6. Track time and attendance at work

How to improve attendance in the workplace if you need to be made aware of the accuracy of the attendance data? If you want to improve staff attendance, then you need to be systematic about it.

An efficient time and attendance tracking software will provide the necessary tool to monitor attendance and treat workers fairly. It is also helpful in ensuring that there is no favoritism at play and all workers are given an equal chance to take a leave if there is an emergency.

It is not unusual for managers to play favorites, creating conflicts and resentment among co-workers. Truein is a robust cloud-based and hardware-less time and attendance management application that companies across industries can use to maintain fairness and improve employee absences.

It uses an AI-based face recognition system to identify workers to record attendance, ensuring no malpractice such as Buddy punching or time theft. Managers can access all attendance data of the workers from the central dashboard and create flexible shift schedules.

Even you can implement an attendance policy for the company within the Truein dashboard. Workers can request a shift switch with a co-worker, and managers are notified to approve such a request.

Truein provides a good starting point to improve staff attendance by tracking absences and allowing managers to monitor staff attendance in real time. Schedule a free demo today and try Truein Attendance System in your organization!

Conclusion

Before tackling the employee attendance problem within your company, it is essential to learn the root cause. Data is an invaluable asset here to improve staff attendance. We recommend using time and attendance software like Truein to track workers’ hours and leaves.