Companies struggle with the problem of employee absenteeism. In 1998, about four percent of full-time workers were absent from their job during an average workweek - meaning they worked less than 35 hours during the week because of injury, illness, or a variety of other reasons.

Companies try desperately to come up with solutions to the problem. One of the most popular solutions is an incentive system, where management offers rewards or bonuses to employees with perfect attendance. Usually, that type of incentive gimmick fails miserably. Why? Because "winning" those incentives is usually based on luck.

Take, for example, a weekly drawing for a monetary reward from a list of employees with perfect attendance in a particular month. That's about as effective as using a lottery system to determine who gets a raise. How would you feel if you were one of those employees with perfect attendance, and you didn't win anything? If every employee can't benefit from having a perfect attendance record, there is no incentive!

To solve poor attendance problems in your company, you have to uncover the reasons behind the absenteeism. A little detective work can go a long way to coming up with a solution that actually works.

The Employee Knows
For starters, try asking your employees why coming to work every day is a problem. You may be surprised at some of the reasons given, and solutions could turn out to be quite simple. Be sure you let the employees know they won't be punished for providing you with this valuable feedback.

Hire a "Detective"
If you believe your employees won't be forthcoming giving information to management, consider hiring an outside consultant to ask the tough questions for you. Employees are much more likely to answer questions honestly if they're able to do so anonymously. If the absentee problem revolves around boredom, or complaints about the boss or the company, workers may be wary of sticking their neck out by being honest. This is especially true if your company has never asked for input from employees in the past. They may begin thinking there's some sort of conspiracy afoot.

State Your Objective
If you're going to poll employees about absenteeism, be honest and straightforward. Explain that absenteeism is a serious problem in your company and that their feedback is vital to the success of the company. You want to hear what the problem is so you can all work to come up with solutions.

Where to Start
To help curb absenteeism in your company, begin by answering the following questions:

• Does your company (and the boss!) communicate with the employees so they know why their contribution and attendance matter?
  
  
• Are employees asked for their opinions regarding job-related problems? Are they given the opportunity to solve those problems?
  
  
• Does your company implement suggestions from employees?
  
  
• Do your employees receive positive feedback when they do a good job?
  
  
• Do experienced employees have a better chance of earning a promotion within the company? The more skilled and experienced an employee becomes, can they get more status, recognition, reward and responsibility on their current job?
  
  
• Are workers with good attendance rewarded, and is that reward significant enough to make a difference?
  
  
• Does an employee's salary go up if they learn more or accomplish more? Are experienced employees given opportunities to cross-train on other assignments?
  
  
• Are there negative consequences when an employee has a pattern of attendance problems? Can they be fired? Does the boss look the other way for some employees, but not others?
  
  
• Are managers held accountable for absenteeism in their departments?

After a little detective work, you may discover that absentee problems are not completely the fault of the employees, but with the procedures and work environment management has created. Listening to your employees and receiving honest answers can help increase employee attendance at your company.