Hope all's well with you and that you've had a good August. Couple of articles as before: one from the organisational perspective, and the other focusing on the individual. Since our last bulletin, we've added a further session to our suite of trainings, on cutting sick absence: take a look at the Reducing Sick Absence course programme if that might be of interest. We've had quite a lot of interest also in our Employee and Organisation Support Service (1-1 support for staff, managers and HR), for organisations big and small, so please take a look to find out more.  

We're focusing here on what we can do to cut sick absence, with in addition some tips and techniques for promoting wellbeing which you might like to pass on to your staff. I hope you find something of interest in the articles that you can use for the organisation and/or for yourself.  

How much of your organisation's sick absence is 'genuine'?

We looked last month at the issue of performance and under-performance, and the relationship between the individual staff member's personal impact on organisational efficiency/the bottom line.  I want to focus this time on sick absence -as this is a significant cost to the organisation - and what we might be able to do about it.

I was looking, as you do, at a CIPD guidance report into managing sickness absence, which mentions the following:

"Genuine illness: it has been reckoned that this accounts for between a half and two-thirds of all absence and is probably the most significant of all the causes of absence" (CIPD, Absence Management 2006)

Scary stuff!! Does this mean that between a third and a half of all sick absence does not come under the category of 'genuine illness'? Whether that's a fair reflection or not, and you'll have an idea what's going on for you locally, what can the organisation do to minimise sick absence and maximise attendance? We obviously want to support staff who are genuinely ill whilst they are off sick, and support them back into the workplace when they are fit to do so. What we want to do too is minimise the chances of non-genuine cases of sick absence, of staff 'pulling sickies', and of remaining off sick for longer than they need to. Getting to grips with why staff do this and doing something to address it is our focus here. 

We'll acknowledge firstly that efficient and effective attendance management procedures - in which managers and staff understand their roles and responsibilities - are going to be very helpful. But we'll acknowledge too that 'working on the individual' and making it unlikely or unacceptable or uncomfortable for them to go off sick unless it's absolutely necessary is key. We'll maximise the chances of that happening if staff are and feel: 

• engaged; valued; responsible; flexible and adaptable; motivated; able to cope with change; resilient; optimistic; confident; committed; challenged (stretched) with meaningful work; in control; free from anxiety, stress and worry; positive; content

(It's going to be helpful too of course if morale is high in the office). That's a long list, and we cannot control all of these elements, and certainly not all of the time, particularly if the individual or the organisation is going through a difficult period. But, we should acknowledge that developing, encouraging and fostering individuals, a workforce and an organisation that reflect a number of these characteristics will maximise efficiency and performance and minimise the costs associated with sick absence and poor performance, whilst also enhancing individual and organisational wellbeing. Coupled with this we need managers/a management team who have the skills, knowledge and understanding to foster and encourage a working environment where the above can take place. (I'll return to this last point, and what we can do to ensure that the organisation does what it can to contribute to rather than detract from the individual's physical and psychological wellbeing, in subsequent newsletters). 

In a nutshell, if we want to cut sick absence, let's start with the individual, and not forget that organisational performance or lack of performance depends very much on them.

The following are amongst the skills and techniques that we cover in our various trainings for individuals in Managing Pressure and Preventing Stress, Resilience, Realistic Optimism, Assertiveness. I hope that you and your staff might find them helpful if and when you face difficulties, and also just day-to-day, with reminders for example of how we CAN deal with things, and how to keep things in perspective. 

When things are tough, try one or more of the following:

1 ROLE MODELLING

How would someone I admire be handling things? This is someone you look up to, either famous or non-famous (friends, relatives etc) Think about what they would be doing and how they would be acting, and try and do the same.

2 BEST FRIEND ADVICE

What advice would I give to my best friend in the same (difficult) situation? This can be useful as it enables us to take a '3rd party'/detached view of things. It'll be helpful too as we like our best friend, we respect our best friend, and we won't beat our best friend up in the way we do ourselves sometimes. 

3 ASK YOURSELF 'IS THIS SITUATION WITHIN MY CONTROL?'

If it's not, let it go (this is a way of taking control). This is easier said than done I know, especially when something is terrifically important to us. We do take back the power though if we can acknowledge and identify that some things are beyond our control.

4 REALISTIC OPTIMISM

What would an optimist be doing/saying? Try and think how they would think, and do what they would do. This isn't about kidding ourselves that everything's alright, despite evidence to the contrary. It is about not letting negative thoughts and behaviours hinder our progress and wellbeing. Optimism will help us to deal with setbacks, and good things are more likely to happen to us.

5 DON'T BE A VICTIM

When life is hard, a lot of us will turn to self-pity, as a kind of defence mechanism. This is of course perfectly natural and acceptable and understandable. We mustn't though let this become our default setting, as it can hamper us in dealing with adversity and getting the most out of situations.   

Feeling sorry for yourself short term: generally okay

Feeling sorry for yourself long term: generally not okay

And in general, day-to-day

6 TRY A RELAXATION TECHNIQUE

How long have you been breathing, and are you any good at it? If we're breathing deeply, from the diaphragm, it helps to relax us, and it's very difficult to be tense. We're then more able to deal with our day-to-day lives, and to think rationally and clearly. We're also more likely to be healthy physically. Notice how you're breathing. Try a breathing exercise like the 'Benson Relaxation Technique'    

7 EXERCISE

It's good for you psychologically: if you're physically fit you're more likely to be psychologically fit

It's good for your brain, and helps with concentration, memory and learning.

You don't have to go to the gym every day, just build in some walking or other exercise for 15/20 minutes every day. Don't overdo it, but try and get your heart rate up if you can.

8 DO WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL GOOD

This is important especially if you used to do things you enjoyed which you've now stopped doing (because you're a parent/professional/married/etc and you now haven't got time........Make some time). As long as it's legal (!), and your enjoyment isn't harming anyone else, don't forget to do those things that make you feel fulfilled and happy. Life is too short not to, and you'll end up being a better parent/professional/married person/etc if you are experiencing those emotions.

9 GO EASY ON YOURSELF

Do not give yourself a hard time when you make a mistake or things go wrong. If it spurs you on to re-double your efforts and go again, then fine. Otherwise, it's a waste of time and energy, and is demotivating and tiring. This is especially so when you've made that particular mistake just the once: you are only human after all!! You can just say to yourself 'These things happen' and 'Won't be doing that again' and move on.

10 TELL YOURSELF YOU CAN DO IT/YOU CAN GET THROUGH IT

We can lack persistence sometimes, and give up when we encounter a hurdle or things don't go well. If that's you, remind yourself of the times when you were successful, of the good things that have happened to you and will be happening to you, and that you have been and can be resourceful. That way, you'll approach and deal with situations more effectively.

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These are 10 of the most useful tips, and I hope you'll try at least one or two of them. You may not have been very skilled at some of them previously. Do be encouraged though by the fact that the more you practice the above, the better you'll get, and, with practice, eventually it will come naturally. I have faith in you (and I want you to have faith in you too!!).

For further advice or if you'd like to know more about any of the above, please get in touch.

That's all for now. I'll be in touch again before too long.

Best wishes

Marc

Marc Kirby

Stress Management Plus

tel. 0118 9001652

info@stressmanagementplus.com