Statistically, Presenteeism rears its ugly head and shows itself for what it really is… a costly, somewhat unseen threat to employers. It is considered a threat because of its stealthy nature. The term itself is new, only recently added to our language. Considering the following alarming statistics, your business may be in danger.

· Presenteeism accounts for 61% of an employees total lost productivity and medical costs.

· Presenteeism costs employers an estimated $2000/yr/employee.

· Employees working at diminished capacity cost employers $250 Billion/yr.

· 42% of employees anticipate elder care issues over the next five years. One of the most commonly requested resources from EAP’s are legal services to cover estate planning, family law, divorce, real estate, bankruptcy and other non-workplace issues, accounting for 60-70% of all EAP requests from employees.

· 64% of unscheduled absences are due to family issues 22%, personal needs 18%, an entitlement mentality 13% and stress 11%.

· 30% of employees come to work at least 5 days when they are too distracted to be effective. 28% of workers took time off for care giving and 25% took at least 1 hour/day to deal with personal issues.

· Costs of all of the expenses related to absence, unscheduled time off has the biggest impact on productivity, profitability and morale.

· 49% of employees lose productivity at a rate of 1 hour or more/day due to stress

· 68% of employees take frequent “stress breaks” at work to talk with others.

Employers must begin to encourage sick or distraught workers to stay home and get appropriate medical or professional attention before returning to work. Consider funding or partially funding an on-site day-care facility. There are many successful models to emulate. Consider expanding or modifying personal leave policies to better aid employees. Expand EAP programs to offer additional employee assistance in a wide range of emotional and family issues. This also has the unseen benefit of enhancing goodwill and demonstrating to employees that their employer cares about their concerns. While these actions may appear to be costly, they are actually an investment in your business.

(Reference:  http://ezinarticles.com/Presenteeism:-The-Hidden-Costs-of-Business)

 Other Medical Director Report Articles You May Be Interested In:

• Maximizing investment on Human Potential

• HSPH Honors Tom Winters

• Millender Series

• Presenteeism:  Unproductive Hours

• Leadership and the Occupational Health Nurse by Joe Flynn 

• Occupational Health Award Winner

• Knowledge Corner:  The Hidden Costs of Doing Business

• Presenteeism: Employer Solutions

Who are we? OEHN delivers premier onsite Medical Director leadership and program oversight for employee and occupational health departments across the country. OEHN is supported by a team of Board Certified Occupational Health physicians, program management staff, project managers and consultants. Its network of twelve hospital clinics and a local, regional, and national network of occupational medicine resources provide labor unions, organizations, hospitals, disability management providers, and the government with a comprehensive portfolio of occupational medicine solutions.

Occupational & Environmental Health Network (OEHN) 
5 Mount Royal Avenue  Marlborough, MA  01752
508 251 7260

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