Absenteeism is very costly. Based on a survey conducted by CCH Incorporated in 2005, the cost for every absent employee is around $660. In addition to this, more than $1 million a year was wasted by multinational corporations because of employee absenteeism.

Any entrepreneur or business owner, therefore, should know the ways on how to prevent employees from missing office works:

1. Keep them healthy.
Admit it, most employees who are absent do get sick. Though you really cannot stop them from suffering illnesses, you can reduce the risks. As much as possible (and if it is only feasible), limit the working hours. Introduce stress management programs. Keep the pantry and cafeteria filled with healthy food.

2. Delegate the tasks.
When employees know they are accountable, they would think twice before taking an absence because they understand the repercussions. Provide more challenging (but not too tiring) jobs to workers who are constantly absent from the office. Allow them to head mini projects or speak during presentations.

3. Be alert on workplace conflicts.
Fights of whatever kind in the organization creates a very stressful environment. Employees want to take a day off just to escape it. You don’t have to wait for social problems to escalate. Be mindful of any change in the relationship among colleagues. Encourage teambuilding activities within departments and in the organization.

4. Promote an open-door policy.
Do not expect all your employees to be very vocal about their concerns. As a boss, it is one of your responsibilities to encourage them to speak up. One of the things you can do is to develop an open-door policy. You can take it literally where employees can come up to you any time with their problems. You can also schedule a regular assembly to discuss important matters.

5. Adopt a work-at-home program.
Many businesspeople would like to maintain an office so they can properly watch the productivity of their employees. However, certain circumstances may prevent them from coming to work, such as sickness of their child, traffic, emergency, and other personal issues. You might want them to take advantage of the work-at-home plan. With technologies such as instant messengers (Yahoo Messenger, Skype, Gtalk, AIM, even Facebook chat) and e-mails, this should be easy to put up.

6. Reward their efforts.
You do not have to give them monetary rewards all the time. Sometimes, all it requires are certificates that can be used as proof of their achievement or contribution to the company. When employees realize they have done something good for the organization, they will be more motivated and won’t be susceptible to absenteeism.

7. Create a very friendly atmosphere.
Follow Google’s lead. Schedule a dress-down day. Allow them to bring their pets and children on the job. Let them decorate their workstations or have a themed office day. Doing so will increase their creativity and productivity.