The specialist Absence Management industry is in its infancy in Australia: many organisations are quite cautious about introducing new systems and approaches, leaving major gaps between common practice and best practice. However, at long last, we have heard there is some competition in the Australian market place for Absence Management Services. We welcome this development as it will assist in supporting this specialist human resource challenge.  

In the UK for example, the number of Day 1 absence management providers has doubled in the past 12 months due to the results these providers have achieved for their clients. There are now over 20 providers supporting approximately 500,000 employees in the public and private sector. The public sector has been the sector of greatest adoption. This growth in the industry helps to explain why absence levels in the UK fell from 8 days per employee to 7.4 in the past twelve months. These providers are a very cost effective solution, and apply more consistent, rigours processes and specialit real-time reporting tools and trigger alerts enabling more timely management action.

We do expect greater acceptance of day 1 absence providers in 2010 in Australia, and the pace of adoption to increase. The economic rebound is assisting...Over the past 3 months we have had triple the usual number of enquiries, and launched programs with 4 companies covering over 3,500 employees in manufacturing, customer service and facilities management environments.

Merry Christmas

Paul
 

Kick Start Attendance In 2010

Don't go another year with high absenteeism levels. When it comes to managing absence, are your managers:

• Avoiding sensitive or difficult absence conversations?
• Feeling frustrated and not sure what to do next?
• Focusing on policy and process and not getting anywhere?

DHS have developed a range of specific high impact Absence Management Training Modules, including:

• Coaching For Attendance
• The Psychology of Absence: The DHS Psychological Model For Managing Absence
• Conducting Return To Work Interviews
• Managing Chronic and/or Problematic Absence
• Mental Health & Absence Management
• Developing Attendance Cultures - Shifting the Entitlement Mentality

These onsite training sessions can be half day or full day programs depending on your needs. Managers will gain new and practical tools and techniques that will enahance their ability to manage absence and attendance . Throughout the program, participants will work with real challenges and goals to embed skills and knowledge acquired.

2010 First Quarter Early Bird

DHS is offering a 20% saving on any training booked before 31st January, and delivered between January and March 2010. Kick start you Attendance Management Strategy for 2010. To register your interest and to discuss your requirements, Click Here

Managing recurrent short term absence is one of the most challenging parts of a managers role. You are invited to receive a free copy of our "Quick Guide To Managing Recurrent Short Term Absence" .

 Some considerations in relation to this for your organisation include:

• Is short term absence a problem for my business? (Short Term absence is typically between 0-2 days duration)
• Do I have formalised processes or 'trigger points' for reviewing these absences with employees?
• If so, how consistently is this occurring and on a scale of 1-10, how effective is this approach?
• Have your managers been trained on the competencies required to manage short-term recurrent absence, not just the process?
• Do you have a system or reporting in place to monitor managers adherence to holding absence review meetings?
• Have you established quality control procedures?

It is our business to help organisations get this type of absence under control, so if you would like to have a discussion with one of our experts, please let us know. And don't forget to request the "Quick Guide." 

Why is absenteeism in government organisations on average 35% higher than the private sector? Is it the generous leave provisions? Is it entitlement mentality? Is it the nature of work? Stress? The unions? All of the above?

Recent sick leave audits and awareness of the issue is putting the high levels of absenteeism under the mircoscope. The DHS Absence Management Diagnostic tool is a proven approach to identify the drivers of absenteeism, and map the most effective approach and strategy to tackle the issue in the short, medium and long term. This diagnostic service provides a proven consulting and psychological framework that will provide a Gap Analysis of your current practice to 'Lead Practice.' It is a vital step before the launch of any absence management strategy. If you would like to evaluate where to go from here....click here

DHS is developing a Quick Reference Pocketbook to assist managers to manage absence and attend to many of the complex situations they are likely to face. Providing easy to read and well structured information, this handbook will be a must for any manager. The handbook will be in hard copy, and if required can be customised to incorporate your corporate policies and procedures. The handbook will cost $20 and a minimum order of 50 copies applies. 

We are going to be holding Absence Reporting Webinars monthly in 2010. These webinars are a great way to up-skill your managers to interpret and utilise all DHS Absence Reporting functions. To register your interest, simply email Client Services and we will book you in to the next available session