Late Again!

March 09, 2006

"Here comes Sally. Fifteen minutes late again! I wonder what her excuse will be this time."

Does this sound familiar?

Dealing with tardiness can be particularly frustrating. When an employee frequently shows up for work late, it demonstrates a lack of dedication to the job. It also irritates other co-workers who make it a priority to get to work on time and can, over time, have a negative affect on morale.

Furthermore, managers sometimes worry that tardiness may be a symptom of an even larger problem: a lack of order and discipline in the work unit. They are concerned that if they don't enforce the rules regarding work hours, then employees eventually will come to believe they can disregard other work standards as well, ultimately resulting in a complete loss of control.

In an attempt to put a stop to it, some managers adopt a no-nonsense approach by adopting a rule for what is an acceptable number of late arrivals. They tell employees that any more than three tardies within a 30-day period, for example, will automatically result in some form of disciplinary action.

On the surface, this strategy appears to be the perfect solution. It sends a strong message to employees and establishes a clear standard; one that is easily measureable.

However, this strategy has some serious drawbacks to it.

First of all, it's an arbitrary standard. Why three times in a 30-day period? Why not two? Or four? And at what point is an employee deemed to be "late"? Is it ten minutes after the designated start time? Five minutes? What about one minute? No matter how you try to rationalize it, the decision has the appearance of being arbitrary.

Furthermore, a "three-times" rule implicitly gives people permission to be tardy three times a month. "It says right here in the employee handbook that I'm allowed to be late three times a month!"

A More Effective Approach

Don't get me wrong. There's nothing wrong with relying on standards such as "three times in one month" to help you determine when you might have a problem.

The mistake managers make, I believe, is when they put it in the form of a rule. A "three-times" rule fails to take into account the situational circumstances surrounding the late arrivals and also, fails to consider the relative impact those late arrivals have on the work. Imposing rule such as this can back you into a corner, leaving you little or no room for discretion.

Obviously, if your organization already has a written rule in place prohibiting employees from being late to work more that a specified number of times, then you have no other choice. You have to enforce it. However, if you have been thinking about adopting such a rule, there is a better alternative.

Rather than enforcing an arbitrary number of late arrivals, treat tardiness as a performance issue. Begin by carefully considering the nature of the job and the impact that the late arrivals have on the work. There is a big difference, for example, between an employee who works more or less independently on the one hand, and a worker who is responsible for opening the building in the morning or answering the telephone. The independent worker can easily make up for an occasional late arrival in the morning by working ten or fifteen minutes later at the end of the day. In contrast, when the person who unlocks the building is late it prevents everyone else from getting their work done, as well.

Of course, even an independent worker can cause problems by turning an occasional late arrival into a self-authorized form of flex-time or by choosing to come into work two HOURS late, instead of a few minutes late. But, even here, you can relate the employee's behavior back to performance. You can say, for example, "While I understand that an occasional late arrival of a few minutes probably doesn't affect your work performance provided you make up for the lost time, we still expect you to observe designated working hours, in the event we need something from you or in case of an impromptu meeting."

Five Tips for Controlling Tardiness

Here are a few more tips for controlling tardiness.

1. Emphasize the importance of punctuality. Explain to employees the importance of arriving at work on time, every day. Make sure they understand how late arrivals affect productivity.
   
   Include punctuality as a criteria in the employees' annual performance review.
   
   Praise employees who consistently show up for work on time. Consider additional incentives as well, especially in those jobs where late arrivals have an acute impact on productivity.
    
2. Stay visible. Let employee's know that you are monitoring the situation.
   
   If possible, position your office near the front entrance. Employees are likely to think twice before coming in late if they have to walk past the boss' office on their way to the work area. If that isn't possible, modify your schedule. Arrange to stroll by the entrance to the work area occasionally or strike up a conversation with someone in that vicinity, at or around the designated start time.
    
3. Provide your workers as much flexibility as you possibly can, taking into account the nature of the work. Ask employees to come up with ideas on how you can accommodate individual needs. You may be surprised at how many creative and effective solutions people can generate on their own.
    
4. Consider the full scope of the situation before talking with an employee regarding an attendance record. What, if any effect do occasional late arrivals have on productivity? If the answer is little or none, then consider letting it go, even if you find them irritating.
   
   Also consider the nature of the situation. Are the tardies due to a temporary situation such as an illness or injury, for example? If so, consider placing the employee on a temporary leave of absence.
    
5. Promptly deal with employees who take advantage of the flexibility given them or allow productivity to suffer. Discuss the situation with the individual and review the dates he or she was tardy. Explain or remind the employee how late arrivals adversely affect performance in the work unit. For example, incoming telephone calls go unanswered, other workers are unable to complete their work assignments, and so on.
   
   Ask the employee if there is any reason why he or she cannot comply with the established start time. If appropriate, offer to make a referral on the employee's behalf to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), if your company has one or to a professional counselor in the community. Explain that continued failure to meet attendance standards may result in the person's employment being terminated. Give the employee sufficient opportunity to demonstrate improvement. Repeat the process, if appropriate.
   

By adopting a performance-based approach and by following the strategies outlined above, you will be able to keep a lid on tardiness, while also giving you the flexibility you need to accommodate a variety of work arrangements and individual situations.

Best regards,

Stephen Foster, Ph.D., SPHR
Expert Supervisor, LLC
1493 Market Street
Tallahassee, FL 32312
(850) 893-5699

E-mail me at: Steve.Foster@ExpertSupervisor.com.