Presenteeism versus Absenteeism – What's the Cost to Business?

While many employers may be familiar with their employees' absenteeism rates, they should also become familiar with their presenteeism rates. Presenteeism is a relatively new phenomenon that occurs when employees come to the job not feeling well and work with conditions that impair their own performance and productivity and – in cases where they are contagious – they infect others. The result is lost productivity.

Studies show that paid sick leave policies reduce the rate of contagious infections in the workplace by isolating sick workers at home and that failure to take time off to regain one's health can actually lead to longer absences as a result of worsened health. Presenteeism also can spread illness within the workplace, affecting additional workers and raising the total employee absence time. Moreover, contagious workers from one company can infect workers in another.

Only half of all U.S. workers have paid sick days for themselves and even fewer can take paid leave to care for a sick child. Employers who do not provide paid sick days may feel it is too expensive; however, new research indicates that when employees are sick on the job, their presence comes at a "hidden" cost of reduced productivity to employers.

A study by AdvancePCS found that the total cost of annual lost productivity is $250 billion, and the cost of presensteeism accounts for $180 billion of that total. By providing employees with paid sick days, employers enable their employees to address preventive health care needs and keep contagious workers away from others.

For further information about Presenteeism, please click on the following link.


Partnership for Prevention is a national membership organization that develops evidence-based solutions to major national health challenges. In this year alone, U.S. health care expenditures will exceed $1.9 trillion, with slightly more than $1 trillion borne by employers and consumers. What can we do to reduce this figure? For starters, we can stop spending 95 cents of every health care dollar to treat disease and start investing in preventing disease. Through this newsletter, we will share with you the latest developments in the prevention field and highlight what policies are working in today's top companies. This is truly "news you can use," and we hope you will join us in our efforts.

Prevention Focus
It is generally found that 80 percent of health care costs are generated by 20 percent of employees. Our focus is on prevention policies and programs proven to reduce premature death and illness by preventing disease before it occurs and through early diagnosis and treatment. Employers want to keep the 80 percent from turning into the chronically ill 20 percent. To do this, Partnership provides evidence-based guidance to policymakers and employers on a wide variety of prevention-related topics including, health habits, immunizations, screening tests and comprehensive worksite health promotion.

Members
Partnership members include academic institutions, corporations, trade associations, nongovernmental organizations, patient groups, associations of health and medical professionals and governmental agencies. Partnership is governed by a board of directors of nationally recognized leaders in multiple fields and disciplines related to prevention and health promotion.

Initiatives
Partnership improves health by promoting greater business involvement in health promotion and disease prevention at the highest levels. Enlightened CEOs recognize that a highly productive workforce is becoming increasingly vital to industrialized nations as most western populations age and proportions of working age citizens shrink, while the need for skilled knowledge-workers expands. Companies whose workforces are optimally "fit-for-duty" gain a business advantage in an ever-tightening global labor market. Achieving this competitive advantage requires informed, proactive management of human capital initiated at the executive level.

To find out more about Partnership for Prevention, please visit us at www.prevent.org.

To view recent articles about Partnership for Prevention, visit USA Today, Miami Herald, Health Leadership and The Wall Street Journal.


A Shift in Focus from the Cost of Health Care to the Total Value of Health

One of Partnership for Prevention's major projects includes Leading by Example, a CEO-to-CEO initiative formed in 2004 to bring effective focus, information, strategies, and direction to companies' and states' employee health policies and practices. To date, we have recruited 19 CEOs to inform their peers about the business case for investing in a healthy workforce. Our purpose is to increase the priority on prevention and health worker promotion programs and increase awareness that not only the growth, but in some cases, the very sustainability of organizations is linked to employee health.

A case study
In 2001, Pitney Bowes, a leader in the office technologies and services field, adapted an aggressive health program that included patient education and awareness. The core components of the program, offered to their 22,000 employees and 24,000 dependents, focused on prevention, early detection and management of chronic health conditions. Pitney Bowes reduced the amount its employees pay for some diabetes and asthma drugs to test if lower prices would encourage employees to take their medications more regularly, thus maximizing employee health and avoiding costly medical crises.

The results were phenomenal. Since 2001, employees with these chronic illnesses have been refilling their prescriptions more regularly. Pitney Bowes is paying slightly more for medication, but the overall median medical cost for people with asthma has dropped more than 16 percent, and for diabetes – 8 percent. Altogether the company is saving more than $1 million a year by paying a larger portion of its employees' prescription-medication bills.

"Having a culture of health at Pitney Bowes has been my passion throughout my 16 years as a senior leader at the company," said Chairman and CEO Michael J. Critelli. "As an employer, we can have a major impact on the health and well-being of our employees."

Pitney Bowes began investing in its employees' health in the 1990s by initiating a broad-based program that provided employees with educational materials (both in print and online), onsite medical clinics, obesity and stress programs, and healthier foods available in the cafeterias. By assisting employees in maintaining and improving their health status, Pitney Bowes' medical-cost increases have remained well below the national benchmark for the past decade.

"Investment in health delivery is consistent with a long-term view of maximizing the return on human capital. Prioritizing health related investments, however, is key."


Workplace Prevention for Flu Season

Every year in the United States, 5 to 20 percent of the population contracts the flu on average. The flu is most commonly spread from person to person by coughing and sneezing or by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching one's mouth or nose.

It is to a company's advantage to invest in flu prevention to maintain a healthy staff. A recent study found that workers with flu-like illnesses reported reduced effectiveness at work for 3.5 days after a flu onset.

The single best way to prevent the flu is to receive a vaccination each fall. October and November are the best times to receive vaccinations, but December and January vaccinations are still effective. Below are a few hints to help minimize the spread of the flu among your employees this winter.

  • Hire a company to come directly to your office and administer flu shots.
  • Remove co-pays for physician visits for flu shots.
  • Encourage employees to wash their hands with soap and water throughout the day, especially after coughing or sneezing.
  • Provide alcohol-based hand sanitizers at copying and printing machines.
  • Remind employees to cover their mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing, or more preferably, use their upper sleeve rather than their hands to do so.
  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick, and, if possible, encourage employees to stay home when they are sick.

Good health habits are the key to protecting against the flu and other viruses. For more information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention follow this link http://www.cdc.gov/flu/.