Small businesses must have ‘sickie’ policies in place, advisor says

Owners and managers of small companies are being urged to ‘crack down on sickies’, after a study found that they cost billions of pounds each year, freshbusinessthinking.com reports.

Research conducted by business advisor, ClearSky HR, revealed that the ‘sick day’ culture equates to an average loss of 40 days’ business per employer, totalling £2,800 per year in wasted salaries. All together, it is estimated that this costs the UK £3.15 billion.

According to the study, small businesses are considered a ‘soft touch’ as they often don’t employ the robust systems and procedures that larger firms benefit from. Consequently, ClearSky is urging business owners and managers to take steps to reduce the amount of sickies their workforce takes – a message that’s perhaps pertinent for those in franchise services, also.

The first step is to introduce and communicate a clear absence policy – one which is consistent for employees regardless of location. Absences should be monitored, ClearSky HR suggests, with occurrences above of an acceptable level explored further. Conducting return to work interviews is also given as a good idea, so that managers can be sure that the absence was genuine.

ClearSky HR’s group managing director, Derek Kelly, emphasised the importance of these measures to hrreview.co.uk: “It’s small business owners that suffer most when staff are absent from work, often having to step in themselves to make up for lost time.

“However, by implementing a few simple policies and procedures, small business owners can help to reduce the practice of skiving and save themselves days of lost time and wasted money.”