Corporate Performance Management

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May 23, 2012

New Survey on International Employee Absenteeism Addresses Sporting Events



Kronos Incorporated's Workforce Institute hired Harris Interactive (News - Alert) to conduct a global survey about employees who call in sick to attend sporting events.

Entitled "Sidelined by Sports," the survey was conducted online between April 10th and 12, 2012. Kronos (News - Alert) interviewed 2,145 people over the age of 18, 1,189 of whom work either full or part time in the U.S. They interviewed a total of 7,302 people worldwide between the ages of 16 and 64 – a total of 5,793 of whom were working full or part time.

The survey asked employees in Canada, China France, India, Mexico and Australia the following questions:

  1. Have you ever called in sick in order to attend a sporting event?
  2. Have you ever called in sick in order to recover from a late evening at a sporting event the night before?
  3. How likely are you to call in sick in order to participate in a sport, yourself?
  4. For what sports are you most likely to call in sick from your job?
  5. Do you feel guilty calling in sick from work in order to either play or watch sports?

The survey also asked interviewees what their employers could do if they wished to reduce the number of days their employees played hooky. The global consensus was that they would require more flexible hours. In India, however, the predominating request was more options for telecommuting.

Kronos Workforce Institute director Joyce Maroney estimates that each year, unscheduled absences account for an average of 8.7 percent of total payroll costs. Findings in the survey suggest that although it may sound a bit funny at first, employers can seriously reduce this margin by speaking with their employees before a large sporting event in order to better determine the call outs they can expect in advance.

Founded 2006, The Workforce Institute is a think tank which takes an international perspective on important issues in the workplace. They look to provide employees with a voice for these issues while simultaneously helping employers figure out how to compromise and provide solutions that best suit the needs of both parties.

Kronos has been performing research on workforce absenteeism since 2006.




Edited by Braden Becker
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