1. Measuring Workplace Absenteeism Using the Bradford Factor to Detect Sick Leave Abuse
Reynold Stone, Ph.D.
Department of Food Production
Faculty of Food and Agriculture
Association of Caribbean Higher Education Administrators
15th Annual International Conference
Jewel Runaway Bay Beach & Golf Resort Runaway Bay,
St. Ann, Jamaica
July 7-9, 2016

2. Introduction
Absenteeism – the habitual and deliberate absence of an employee from his of her job.
Major problem faced by many organisations worldwide including institutions of higher education.
High absenteeism – costly, leads to disruption in the workplace, reduced productivity, low quality service, and low morale.

3. Introduction (cont’d)
Absenteeism has also been correlated with engagement suggesting that a high level of absenteeism indicates a workforce with a low level of engagement (HR Metrics Service, 2014).
Trinidad and Tobago ranks fifth in the world with the highest rates of workplace absenteeism – culture to blame says Dr. Keith Nurse, WTO Chair (Singh, 2015).

4. Introduction (cont’d) [Source: World Economic Forum, 2015]

5. Introduction (cont’d)
At UWI, St. Augustine, sick-leave benefit – 21 days for monthly-paid employees and 14 days for daily-paid employees – Collective Agreements with Trade Unions.
At UWI, St. Augustine, little or no work has been done to measure absenteeism to determine whether the sick-leave benefit is abused.

6. Objective of the study
To measure absenteeism to assess whether the sick leave benefit is abused by employees in the Department of Food Production, Faculty of Food and Agriculture, The University of the West Indies St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago.

7. Data used
Attendance records of 33 employees: Employee types: 24 monthly-paid 9 daily-paid. Period: January 1 – December 31, 2015.

8. The Bradford Factor
The Bradford factor (or formula) is based on the theory that short, frequent and unplanned absences are far more disruptive to any organisation than longer, planned absences, where the redeployment of human resources can be more easily planned and organised (Clare, 2015).

9. The Bradford Factor (cont’d)
Bradford Factor score = S2 x D
where,
S = the total number of spells (instances) of sick leave over the year
D = the total number of sick-leave days for the year

10. The Bradford Factor (cont’d)
Case 1
10 days: 2 x 5 days
BF score = 22 x 10 = 4 x 10 = 40
Case 2
10 days: 10 x 1 day
BF score = 102 x 10 = 100 x 10 = 1000

11. Typical Bradford Factor scores with corresponding courses of action
Course of action
0 – 50
No action required
51 – 200
Verbal warning
201 – 400
Written warning
401 – 600
Final warning
600+
Dismissal

12. Summary statistics of sick-leave days taken
Employees
Minimum
Median
Mean
Maximum
All
0.0
19.5
18.1
29.5
Monthly-paid
7.0
18.5
17.4
24.0
Daily-paid
20.0
19.9

13. Sick-leave days taken – all employees

14. Sick-leave days taken – monthly-paid employees

15. Sick-leave days taken – daily-paid employees

16. Box plot comparison of sick-leave days taken by monthly- and daily-paid employees

17. Summary statistics of Bradford Scores
Employees
Minimum
Median
Mean
Maximum
All
3,570
4,822
22,736
Monthly-paid
250
2,995
3,838
10,140
Daily-paid
5,202
7,447

18. Bradford Factor scores – all employees

19. Bradford Factor scores – monthly-paid employees

20. Bradford Factor scores – daily-paid employees

21. Box plot comparison of Bradford Factor scores of monthly-paid and daily-paid employees

22. Conclusions
Sick leave is abused by the majority of employees in the Department of Food Production (DFP), Faculty of Food and Agriculture, The University of the West Indies (UWI), St. Augustine.
Absenteeism by employees in the DFP seems to be just as bad as in the national working population of Trinidad and Tobago.
If typical Bradford Factor scores were used as done in the UK, the vast majority of DFP employees (91%) would have been dismissed in 2015.
Greater emphasis needs to be placed on work ethics (punctuality and attendance) in the appointment and promotion of employees at UWI, St. Augustine.

23. Recommendation
Employees should be educated about the Bradford Factor and the Bradford Factor score should be employed in appointment and promotion decisions at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine.

24. References
Clare, E. (2015, September 16). How to use the Bradford Factor for absence management. Retrieved January 9, 2016, from
HR Metrics Service. (2014, August). HR Metrics Interpretation Guide Version 7.1. Retrieved January 9, 2016, from
Isle of Man Government Office of Human Resources. (n.d.). Bradford Factor Score. Retrieved January 9, 2016, from
Lucas, E. (2013, October 29). What is the Bradford Factor and how can it help you manage absences? Retrieved January 9, 2016, from
Singh, N. (2015, October 30). T & T has absenteeism problem says WTO chair. Retrieved October 31, 2015, from
Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce. (n.d.). Managing Employee Absenteeism. Retrieved January 9, 2016, from
World Economic Forum. (2015). The Global Competitiveness Report Retrieved June 20, from /Global_Competitiveness_Report_ pdf

25. THANK YOU