WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT PRESENTEEISM AT WORK?
Legend: Recommendation of our expert
Expert advisor:
- Caroline BIRON, associate professor, Department of Management, Faculty of Business Administration, Université Laval
Authors:
- Étienne FOUQUET, research assistant, Université de Sherbrooke
France ST-HILAIRE, associate professor, human resource management, Université de Sherbrooke
Maude VILLENEUVE, research professional, Université de Sherbrooke
This initiative was made possible through a collaboration with the Université de Sherbrooke.
We know that presenteeism is more costly than absenteeism for organizations. Yet it is rarely measured in workplaces, even though it is an important indicator of employees’ health. Presenteeism is the vicious work cycle that makes employees sick; these same employees who show up to work when they are sick are less productive.
To better understand presenteeism in the workplace, we interpreted Pohling, Buruck, Jungbauer and Leiter’s study, published in 2016. They were examining organizational factors related to presenteeism, seeking to better understand the relationships between risk factors in the work environment and presenteeism at work. To do this, they asked themselves whether
- certain factors in the work environment directly affect the frequency of presenteeism and lost productivity related to health problems;
- the work environment indirectly affects presenteeism and lost productivity through a deterioration in mental and physical health;
- a relationship exists between the frequency of presenteeism and the decrease in productivity.
What do we mean by: Presenteeism ?
We speak of presenteeism when an employee comes to work even when they are physically or psychologically ill, or when they are not capable of working.
The authors of this study took into account two definitions of presenteeism – one North American and one European – to get a fuller picture of the concept, along with cultural nuances:
- In Europe, presenteeism is coming to work when you are sick; it is measured by the number of days that the employee came to work sick over the past year.
- In North America, presenteeism is expressed by lost productivity associated with one or more health problems, often measured during last 2 weeks of work.
Lost productivity
Lost productivity is demonstrated, for example, by difficulty concentrating on tasks, reduced work quality or difficulty working as part of a team because of an altered physical or mental state.
Risk factors in the work environment
The authors considered 6 risk factors in the work environment.
| 1. High workload | When work demands exceed the employee’s abilities. The employee must do more than is possible with the time and resources available. |
| 2. Low control | The employee’s perception that they cannot influence decisions that affect their work, do not have sufficient professional autonomy or do not have access to the resources they need to work efficiently. |
| 3. Low recognition | When recognition (social, professional and at times monetary) does not meet the employee’s expectations. The lack of recognition by colleagues and managers devalues the work and results in the employee feeling that they are not effective. |
| 4. Low sense of community | Low quality of social interaction at work, including the presence of conflicts, lack of mutual support, closeness and ability to work as part of a team. |
| 5. Sense of injustice | When work decisions are perceived as unfair and the employee is treated with a lack of respect. Fair treatment communicates respect and confirms the employee’s self-esteem. |
| 6. Value conflict | A value conflict at work can undermine the employee’s commitment. The greater the gap between personal and organizational values, the more the employee must compromise between the work they want to do and the work they have to do. |
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