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Employee late for work? Deal with the lateness playfully!
In every company and every office, there will be staff members who have a bad habit of being late for work. This behavior does not necessarily mean a decrease in employee performance, but it can show their attitude towards the job itself. How to prevent personnel from being late?
Every employee happens to be late, but if he does it often, there is a problem. It is worth knowing how to manage employee lateness in an effective, yet non-stressful way to ensure a good atmosphere in the office.
Lateness costs: employee tardiness and its influence on a team's morale
Most people who come to the office, even if they show up on time, start their workday by preparing coffee, reading messages, talking to colleagues. Only then did they gently “land” on their positions and get ready for work. Preparation for work can take from five, even to fifteen minutes each morning. This behavior may not seem harmful, but if frequent, it negatively impacts the team's morale. Staff members who show up early in the office and start work on time feel uneven and treated unfairly, seeing that employees, who are usually late, do not suffer any consequences. It can also mean that more and more employees will be late.
Lateness policy: keep track of employee tardiness
Controlling personnel arrival and departure times is hard work if done manually, especially when it comes to monitoring employees' lateness. Storing hours in the monthly and weekly forms to create reports that help you know which crew members should change their behavior is very time-consuming. Fortunately, it does not have to be this way.
Thanks to Calamari, you will automate employee time tracking. Our modern software records information on entries, exits, breaks, and hours worked in real-time, saving a lot of time for managers and the HR department workers responsible for creating reports on working time records of all the employees. Calamari Clock In allows you to set notifications for lateness, so you receive information about which team member did not arrive on time. The program also allows you to automatically generate weekly and monthly employee attendance reports, so you can easily check all late arrivals and absences, and leaving work too early.
How to deal with late-coming employees? Address the issue properly
Delays do not have to harm the employee's performance, but negatively affect the atmosphere in the company, so they should be prevented. An appropriate way of communicating changes in employee behavior should be found to maintain good relations with and within the crew while achieving the intended goal.
Psychologist Alanís Valdez proposes an interesting solution how to communicate a change effectively in staff behavior, thanks to which it will be possible to reduce or eliminate lateness in the company while maintaining a positive atmosphere in the office.
He is late for work again? Use the solution of Alanís Valdez!
The attendance officer is the person who keeps track of the staff's arrival times. He will analyze the data and identify which employee, within the workforce or in a particular sector, was the one who arrived late most often or accumulated most minutes of tardiness. Or a mix of both.
Once that person has been identified, they will be informed that later, in the office, at the end of the day, all employees will gather. This person who has earned “the distinction” or the one who has had the most delays will stand in front of everyone and tell them a joke.
It's that simple.
One of the most common fears of all people is public speaking, and it gets worse if you have to tell a joke. The anxiety of addressing an audience is more significant and exemplifying than a payroll discount or an uncomfortable wake-up call.
It is clear that negative behaviors must be eliminated, and we should be careful with the way it is done. For that reason, this slogan to tell a joke and have a good laugh seemed to us a great proposal to improve the working atmosphere within your organization.
What else you can do to deal with employee lateness?
The humorous way of managing latecomers will help you reduce the number of late employees by referring to their unwillingness to bear the lateness-related consequences: of public telling a joke. However, this is a kind of punishment that should not be the background end of your actions. If an employee changes their behavior and stops being late, it is good to emphasize that such a change has been noticed.
Thanks to this, the employee will feel that their efforts have not been in vain. Of course, employees should not be rewarded for this reason. This can be badly received by other people in the company and have a negative impact on the atmosphere of the work environment. Emphasize that you see change and express satisfaction with it, remembering to appreciate also those employees who always show up in the office on time.
Summary
Employee lateness is a problem that many companies face regardless of whether they are small companies, startups, or large organizations. The atmosphere at work, which translates into team productivity, may depend on their approach to solving this issue.
It is worth controlling which employees do not come to the office on time, but instead of punishing them with traditional methods, it is worth introducing a solution that will provide a humorous atmosphere in the office. How? By referring to one of the most common human fears – fear of public speeches – which will make people will watch themselves. This will prevent the creation of a nervous atmosphere in the teams, and at the same time will bring the expected results.
Does your company have difficulties with numerous latecomers? How does it manage this issue? Maybe it is time to try something new and add some humor to your everyday work life? Please let us know what you think about it!
Author: Laura De Cecco
FAQ: dealing with employee lateness with humor
How to handle employees consistently late for work?
To handle employees consistently late for work, employ the “joke solution” by Alanís Valdez. This approach has employees humorously addressing their tardiness, creating a lighter work atmosphere while still emphasizing the importance of punctuality.
What’s an effective lateness policy for persistently late employees?
An effective policy for persistently late employees combines humor with accountability. For example, requiring the employee most frequently late to deliver a public joke can be an effective strategy to manage chronic lateness and uphold morale. However, it's important to ensure that the humor used does not single out or ridicule the individual, as this could exacerbate feelings of exclusion rather than foster team integration
Best discussions starters to address employee tardiness?
Start discussion by recognizing that while being late might not always impact work directly, it can affect team dynamics, as shown by our time tracking data. Discussing the humorous policy aspects may also ease into the conversation more smoothly.
How to deal with an employee late for work using Calamari's Clock In?
When dealing with an employee always late to work, utilize Calamari's real-time tracking to pinpoint specific instances of lateness. Consider integrating light-hearted penalties that encourage punctuality without causing undue stress. A chronically late employee may respond to them better, actually take a hint and apply themselves.
How does lateness impact overall employee time costs?
Lateness can significantly disrupt work and increase time costs, as evidenced by tracking data. For instance, an employee in the USA who is late by just 10 minutes every day accumulates the equivalent of a full week of paid vacation over the course of a year. This seemingly minor issue can have a major financial impact on businesses by reducing productivity and increasing operational expenses. Addressing this issue through a balanced mix of humor and serious policy can effectively reduce these negative impacts.
Sources:
Valdez, E. A. (2016, August 26). Cómo hacer que los empleados no lleguen tarde. Retrieved from: http://www.elmoalanis.com/comos-how-to-s/como-hacer-que-los-empleados-no-lleguen-tarde.html
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