Do You Make Staff Sick?

Absences from the office are about a lot more than illness, experts say, and there's plenty a manager can do to reduce downtime caused by 'sickies'.

Believe it or not, organizational research suggests staff in many workplaces together develop something of an unwritten agreement regarding how many sick days are acceptable each year. And, in many of those organizations, staff will ensure they take their quota, having legitimized their absence thanks to the behaviour of their manager. It all comes back to the manager.

A researcher at the forefront of absenteeism at work is Professor Gary Johns, an internationally respected Professor of Management at Concordia University in Montreal Canada. Two of the biggest causes of absence, he says, are feelings of unfairness in how staff are treated and social causation, or the imitation of the behaviour of others.

"There is no normal amount of absence," Johns says. "There are major differences across companies, countries and professions. But research shows staff tend to peg absenteeism behaviour on that of others around them. So when people join organizations, their attendance behaviour fluctuates for the first few months, but over time it gravitates towards the norm that has been established within their unit."

What causes absenteeism?

As illness-related explanations are generally the only reasons accepted for unplanned absences from work, other reasons can go unnoticed or unmeasured, says Dr. Stefani Yorges, Graduate Co-Ordinator Psychology at Pennsylvania's West Chester University in the US.

"There can be sensitive issues that prevent people from going to work, such as difficulties with partners, problems with children, or drug dependency," Yorges says. "Other factors may include psychological difficulties or perceptions that their work life is unfair in terms of return for input.

"There are also individuals who need to exert some control over their work environment, and without this, take time off. Others may feel their efforts are not recognized and that 'no one cares anyway'."

Johns estimates that around 30-50 per cent of sick days in a typical organization are not due to illness. One of the strongest root causes of absenteeism is perceived unfairness in the workplace, which is absolutely under the control of individual managers.

"Employees are very sensitive to fairness and absenteeism is one of the few ways they can affect the personal balance sheet quickly. There's a point at which this behaviour can be seen as legitimate. Managers have to be supersensitive to fairness," Johns suggests.

Reducing absenteeism

People respond to how they're treated and the solution to absenteeism begins with leadership and management. Managers must get to know their staff personally, not to a stage where they're becoming intrusive on the staff member's life, but they should know which hockey team they follow and how many kids they have. Leadership should be visible and this starts with the development of visible relationships.

Employees need to know what their place is in the company and how what they do impacts on where the company is going. They need to feel part of the company and know their opinion is valued. If there are good relationships and clear expectations and staff feel managers care about them then staff won't want the company to suffer.

Targeting three specific areas will likely bring significant change in absenteeism levels.

Improve the skills of current supervisors; recognize and reward employee contributions; and increase employee involvement in decision-making processes.

It's vital for managers to convey the importance of good attendance to employees, as well. Too often the matter will only become an issue when somebody is found to be seriously exploiting the system, but this does nothing to change habits of the mass of staff taking their regular amount of days.

If a manager conveys expectations that staff will come to work each day, and is honestly concerned when there are problems with absence, then chances are that absenteeism rates will decrease.

[Source: article by Chris Sheedy from Management Today, September 2010]

Best of BC

For all you hospitality people in the Lower Mainland of BC, I came across this "best of" list on a paste site so I'm not sure of any accuracy in the surveys but found it interesting. Enjoy!

Readers' choices
Media, Arts & Culture
Lifestyle
Travel
Sports & Recreation
Food & Drink
City Life
Style
Mind, Body & Soul

These winners were selected by readers in an on-line survey conducted earlier this year. To view a winner's details, click on a question.
Food & Drink
Best restaurant wine list (international wines)
1. Blue Water Cafe + Raw Bar
2. Cioppino's and Cioppino's Enoteca
3. Salt Tasting Room

Best place for cheap drinks
1. The Cambie
2. Café Crêpe
3. Metropole

Best coffee shop (national chain)
1. Starbucks Coffee
2. Blenz Coffee
3. Tim Hortons

Best tea shop
1. The Secret Garden Tea Company
2. DAVIDsTEA
3. Granville Island Tea Co.

Best bakery (breads)
1. Terra Breads
2. COBS Bread
3. Uprising Breads Bakery

Best lesbian club event/bar
1. Lick
2. Hershe Bar
3. Celebrities Night Club

Best B.C. wine/winery (red wine)
1. Burrowing Owl Estate Winery
2. Mission Hill Family Estate
3. Quails' Gate

Best restaurant bathroom
1. Cactus Club Cafe
2. Joey Restaurants
3. Moxie's Classic Grill

Best coffee shop (local chain)
1. JJ Bean Coffee Roasters
2. Caffè Artigiano
3. Bean Around the World Coffees

Best restaurant to take out-of-town guests
1. The Sandbar
2. The Boathouse Restaurant
3. Seasons in the Park
3. The Salmon House

Best brew pub
1. Yaletown Brewing Company
2. Steamworks Brewing Company
3. Granville Island Brewing Taproom

Best restaurant/café with free Wi-Fi
1. Waves Coffee House
2. Starbucks Coffee
3. Blenz Coffee

Best sports bar
1. Shark Club
2. Forum Sports Bar
3. Red Card Sports Bar + Eatery
3. Score On Davie

Best B.C. wine/winery (white wine)
1. Burrowing Owl Estate Winery
2. Quails' Gate
2. Mission Hill Family Estate
3. JoieFarm Wines

Best romantic restaurant
1. Seasons in the Park
2. Bishop's
2. Chambar Restaurant
3. Il Giardino

Best locally brewed beer
1. Granville Island Brewing: Lions Winter Ale
2. Granville Island Brewing: Cypress Honey Lager
3. Granville Island Brewing: Island Lager

Best brunch
1. Medina Cafe
2. Milestones Grill + Bar
3. Sophie's Cosmic Cafe

Best gay bar
1. Celebrities Night Club
2. Odyssey Night Club
3. Lounge 1181

Best fair-trade coffee shop
1. JJ Bean Coffee Roasters
2. Salt Spring Coffee
3. Bean Around the World Coffees

Best bar
1. The Roxy
2. The Lamplighter Public House
3. The Cambie

Best produce store
1. Kin's Farm Market
2. Capers Whole Foods Market
3. Donald's Market

Best butcher
1. Windsor Quality Meats
2. Jackson's Meats & Deli
3. Granville Island Public Market

Best organic produce store
1. Capers Whole Foods Market
2. Choices Markets
3. Vancouver Farmers Markets

Best B.C. beer brewed outside Vancouver
1. Okanagan Springs
2. Phillips
3. Kokanee

Best Canadian beer brewed outside B.C.
1. Sleeman's
2. Alexander Keith's
3. Big Rock
3. Unibroue

Best strip club
1. Brandi's Exotic Nightclub
2. The Number 5 Orange
3. Penthouse Night Club

Best restaurant for meat
1. The Keg Steakhouse & Bar
2. Memphis Blues Barbeque House
3. Gotham Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar

Best late-night takeout
1. Fritz European Fry House
1. The Naam Restaurant
2. Tsui Hang Village
3. McDonald's

Best cheese store
1. Les amis du FROMAGE
2. La Grotta Del Formaggio
3. Granville Island Public Market
3. Mount Pleasant Cheese

Best restaurant for fine dining
1. Bishop's
2. West
3. Chambar Restaurant

Best veggie restaurant
1. The Naam Restaurant
2. The Foundation
3. Bandidas Taqueria

Best restaurant (independent)
1. Chambar Restaurant
2. Vij's
3. The Naam Restaurant

Best coffee shop (independent)
1. JJ Bean Coffee Roasters
2. 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters
3. Caffè Artigiano

Best restaurant for cheap eats
1. Hawker's Delight
2. Bon’s Off Broadway
3. The Foundation

Best restaurant wine list (B.C. wines)
1. Raincity Grill
2. Salt Tasting Room
3. Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House

Best bubble tea shop
1. Dragon Ball Tea House
2. Bubble World
3. Pearl Castle
3. Pearl Fever

Best pickup bar (F seeking M)
1. The Roxy
2. The Lamplighter Public House
2. Republic
3. The Sandbar

Best place for cheap beer
1. The Cambie
2. Café Crêpe
3. Royal Canadian Legion

Best fresh seafood store
1. Granville Island Public Market
2. Seven Seas Fish Company
3. The Lobster Man

Best cooking school
1. The Dirty Apron Cooking School
2. Pacific Institute Of Culinary Arts
3. Vancouver Community College

Best patio
1. The Boathouse Restaurant
2. The Keg Steakhouse & Bar
3. Bridges Seafood Restaurant

Best new restaurant
1. Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie
2. Maenam
3. The Corner Suite Bistro de Luxe

Best local microbrewery
1. Granville Island Brewing
2. Storm Brewing
3. R&B Brewing Co.

Best restaurant to work for
1. Cactus Club Cafe
2. Earls
3. The Keg Steakhouse & Bar

Best all-day breakfast
1. Denny's
2. Bon’s Off Broadway
3. Sophie's Cosmic Cafe

Best wine store
1. Liberty Wine Merchants
2. B.C. Liquor Stores
3. Marquis Wine Cellars

Best imported beer
1. Stella Artois
2. Heineken
3. Guinness
3. Corona

Best kid-friendly restaurant
1. White Spot
2. Little Nest
3. Red Robin

Best pickup bar (M seeking F)
1. The Roxy
2. The Sandbar
3. Republic

Best gelato/ice cream shop
1. Mario’s Gelati
2. La Casa Gelato
3. Gelarmony

Best restaurant (chain)
1. Earls
2. Cactus Club Cafe
3. Milestone's Grill and Bar

Best grocery store
1. Capers Whole Foods Market
2. Choices Markets
3. Save-On-Foods

Best bakery (pastries)
1. Fratelli Authentic Italian Bakery
2. Thomas Haas Patisserie Chocolate Café
3. Terra Breads
3. Notte's Bon Ton Pastry & Confectionery

A Depressed Economy Stimulates Fear and Greed

The economy. I've talked to many people about the economy over the past two years and its impact on the hospitality industry in Western Canada. When we have a downturn in the economy and continued instability, there are two emotions driving our actions and that of business in the hotel, restaurant, and tourism industry; greed and fear.

Whether you're an unemployed bellman or a over-worked restaurant Area Manager, fear and greed are constantly directing your work (or lack thereof),directly or indirectly.

Take restaurants for instance - they have been slowly seeing an initial market recovery in their bottom line. In most cases, their recovery has been spurred by lay-offs and wage and benefits cuts. Although many are in a financial position to hire needed employees, greed and and fear prevent them from hiring some new employees. Saving money is great in an unstable economy and the fear that they may have to lay people off again is just too painful.

As Joni Thomas Doolin, CEO of People Report, has pointed out, "we are essentially terrified of making hiring mistakes, because the consequences have been so raw and visible. So we procrastinate".

While hiring managers are procrastinating, the skilled and unemployed hospitality workers are also terrified - terrified to be facing a pending cut in unemployment insurance and long-term career holds. Recruiters, myself included, will tell you that a fear and greed mentality has doubled and tripled hiring cycle times of what they have been in the not too distant past - and the job markets feel like wading through molasses.

According to Joni Thomas Doolin, "any hiring manager worth their salt is going to make more mistakes in the years ahead - the trick is the overall batting average - not perfect seasons from now on. More truth, this is a very fragile economy, with stops and starts, and progress and reversals, and it doesn't show any sign of changing soon. So it is possible that we will work in companies where there will be more restructuring, reorganization and yes- job loss."

We're in the midst of a massive change in the workplace while trying to recruit the right workers, in the right place, at the right time. But the perfect time doesn't exist in such a volatile economy. "As we all know in the interim, our existing workers are fried, doing more with less, less engaged and have their eyes on the door. No one needs another survey to get that" says Joni Thomas Doolin.

Accelerating the job market recovery will have to start the same place that market recoveries start - in our heads. Companies, employees and potential employees have to work through the fear and greed that dominates the current economy and affects our ability to be hospitable hospitality leaders. It doesn't have to be grandiose - or foolish - just a willingness to recognize that the road back to prosperity includes making targeted investments in talent.