From persistent sickness absence to workplace bullying, there are a number of difficult issues that come with the territory when you’re an owner-manager.

Learning to tackle these problems swiftly and effectively is essential to ensuring your team remains focused and motivated.  Here we delve deeper into these two complex management challenges and offer some tips on how to stay on top of such problems.

Absenteeism

Staff absence can be a difficult issue to manage. Employees are allowed to self-certify short-term absences, so if they’re repeatedly taking two or three days here and there, how can you be sure that it’s genuine sickness?

The first step is to monitor it. Look for patterns based on particular days of the week, or time off around bank holidays. When a staff member comes back to work after an absence, immediately arrange a return-to-work interview. This should not be treated as an interrogation, but rather a means of confirming the reasons for the absence and finding out if any support is needed.

Find out whether the employee has seen a doctor, or is receiving treatment. Evidence suggests that following up in this way has a far greater impact on absence levels than concepts such as ‘duvet days', where employers give staff the right to take a day off, with no prior booking required.

Look for any underlying reasons at home or work. Your company culture can have a significant impact on absence levels. Is your business a relaxed and supportive environment? Is a line manager using aggressive tactics? Are the working hours too long?

If the problem persists, schedule a meeting with the employee concerned to discuss the issues. Give them the right to be accompanied, and share any information you have collected. People are often shocked to learn how much time off they have had. Point out the difficulties absences cause for the business. You could ask them to provide a doctor’s note, but you will need to pick up the cost of medical certificates. You can also ask for consent to obtain a medical report.

If there are no medical reasons, schedule a meeting to discuss an expected improvement in attendance, a date for review and the possible outcomes.

Potentially, you could dismiss your employee if the problem continues. But be careful to check for underlying health problems or any disability discrimination issues, and always follow the statutory process properly.

Workplace bullying

What would you do if an employee made an allegation of bullying? It may seem unlikely, but it’s a problem that is thought to affect one in seven UK workers. Regardless of whether you see any substance to the claim, you need to take the matter seriously. Arrange a meeting with the employee to investigate the complaint promptly and give them the chance to talk the problem through.

Identify instances of alleged bullying and why they are unacceptable. Make detailed notes of meetings and tell the employee that you will investigate. If required, meet with other staff and make sure you have the full picture before making any decision.

Be as open minded as you can. Existing members of a close-knit team may regard unreasonable behaviour as acceptable or amusing, but it may cause considerable distress to a new employee.

Employees may simply be unaware that their behaviour is inappropriate, and you may be able to sort this out informally. However, it may need to be dealt with as a disciplinary matter. If this is the case, your careful investigation and detailed notes will be needed by those who handle the disciplinary process.

Tools for effective management

Whatever problems you face as a manager, there are certain steps you can take to ensure you stay ahead of the game and identify problems early:                    

  • Have mechanisms in place to monitor staff performance. One of the best ways of doing this is through regular appraisals. This not only gives you a chance to address performance concerns early, it enables you to recognise and reward those who are going the extra mile.
  • Set your staff specific objectives, or key performance indicators (KPI) so they know exactly what is expected of them. Make sure these targets are realistic and achievable.
  • Ensure there are clear and open channels of communication and make it clear that you welcome input and ideas and are happy to listen to any concerns that may arise.  

© Crimson Business Ltd. 2011