Outsmart absenteeism by thinking about prevention

Sickness absence in the workplace: it is a subject that gives many employers the itch. At the same time, it is also a topic that should be discussed. By discussing it, you know what is going on among employees and you can make a difference. Absenteeism can be controlled in various ways. One approach is to increase the resilience of your employees by offering them tools about health. Moreover, prevention is possible through other avenues. Read in this article how you can reduce absenteeism in the workplace.

Resilience of employees as a shield against absenteeism

Every person has a certain resilience. When it comes to resilience, it is not about illness or absenteeism. Resilience is mainly about how firmly you are in your shoes, taking into account all kinds of health aspects. For example, sleep, fitness and nutrition play an important role in resilience. But also think about mental well-being and quality of life. The better and more positive you are in life, the better your resilience. And the stronger your resilience, the smaller the chance of absenteeism and illness.

Using resilience in practice

How can resilience then be used to reduce absenteeism? In order to get started with this, resilience must be made ‘measurable’. A short, low-threshold questionnaire has been developed for this purpose, which must be completed periodically. This questionnaire gives employees insight into their own health and resilience, after which tools are offered to improve this. With the aim of staying ahead of absenteeism.

Safety and prevention for absenteeism

Using resilience is just one way to reduce absenteeism. Another possibility is to make the workplace safer. Experts can be called in to achieve this, among other things. Common experts are, for example: the occupational hygienist, the senior safety expert and the occupational and organizational expert. For the former, it is the task to create a healthy working environment. This includes looking at physical strain, potentially hazardous substances and harmful noise. The senior safety expert, in turn, mainly examines the company itself and its processes. Based on this, a new or improved company policy can be drawn up. The labor and organization expert mainly looks at the connection between work and employee and how that connection can be improved.

Prevention is a key to less absenteeism

Absenteeism is an inevitable occurrence. However, it is one that can be greatly reduced by using the right means of prevention. For example, resilience is a concept that, if structurally implemented and measured, can make a demonstrable difference in the degree of absenteeism. Moreover, you can have your company scrutinized by specialists. Thanks to their recommendations, you can make work safer and more pleasant. By dealing smartly with these different aspects, you can outsmart your absenteeism 9 times out of 10.