Too busy for a sick day?

Gone are the days of high absenteeism going unchecked. Companies are now clamping down so much on days off sick that a new survey has revealed that three quarters of employees still turn up for work when they could legitimately have stayed home sick.

The main causes of this are fears of letting colleagues deal with the workload, too much work piling up on your desk if you're not there and the fear of getting a bad record at work for absenteeism. Either way, sick people in offices ....where will this lead?

The report claims that the majority of us, some 71% still go into the office when we are unwell. The research also revealed that:

People working in marketing, advertising and PR were most likely to go into work if they were feeling unwell, whereas those in the charity sector and graduate trainees were least likely to soldier on. Women were more likely than men to go into the office if they were ill.

What this tells me is that the amount you are paid could be linked to your sense of obligation to the job (charity work and graduate trainees are not normally high earners), money can buy a sense of loyalty and that women appear to be more wary of being judged so ignore their poor health.

Either way, it is very frustrating to be sitting next to a clearly unwell person in the office who is kindly sharing their germs with you but perhaps now you can see why they're there.

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Office life is getting tense - lighten yours up

It's impossible at the moment to switch on the news without hearing about banks closing, mortgage houses collapsing and doom, doom and more gloom where money and the future is concerned.

This is bound to effect the attitude people have to work and employees can start to look around for safer bets. Staff turnover is always higher than any organisation would like but it's costly too. Now is the time to be motivating staff to feel happy and secure where they are and incentivising them to choose to stay put rather than be tempted elsewhere. But how can you do this without throwing more money at the situation? Remember, pay rises don't always get loyalty.

There are many great ways to make employees feel valued and wanted by an organisation and sometimes, it's easy to miss the point and just give a small pay rise or a change of job title. If you're looking for something that will cost you less but inject your business with a bit of buzz, why not try one or all of the following:

1. Wellness Program - a heath, fitness and relaxation program offered to staff is a great way of telling them you value their well being, you want them to be less stressed and you want them to have fun with their colleagues whilst achieving a great personal health goal they may have. Anything from yoga classes to relaxation sessions, running club to team football. These perks will always leave your staff feeling indulged and valued. Find out how to organise events like these for your teams.

2. Get Flexible - Work and Life work well together when they are balanced but when one demands too much at the cost of the other, the individual caught in the middle always suffers. Why not allow staff to work from home once a week with clearly set out targets and a lot of trust. This change can achieve staff loyalty in next to no time and is usually rewarded with hard work - not slacking. Review this each month so both parties know it is working.

3. Start Listening - personal Development Reviews are sometimes ignored by companies but it is the only official time that employees feel listened to so start doing them regularly and make sure issues and gripes get listened to an acknowledged. When employees leave companies, it is often because they feel like a number. Address that issue once and for all by being pro-active. You'll gain their respect.

Photograph by The Flooz (flickr)

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How to squeeze in a 5 mile walk without leaving the office

I work from home and I also have a gym membership. I get to the gym at least 3 times a week and manage to go running at least twice a week but some weeks are so busy, I don't get the time to work out and this makes me feel stressed. I always perform better when I exercise and work more efficiently and so a few months ago, I started walking whilst talking and even tested it out on a pedometer to see how far I was going. I have never looked back. but what if you could walk 5 miles without leaving your desk? Sounds good doesn't it?

Here's how you can squeeze in 5 miles of walking into your day - saves going to the gym after work and means that you'll get fit, deal with stress and stay healthy without having to travel to the gym.

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