Coming down with low job satisfaction?

People who call in sick are more likely to be suffering from low job satisfaction than a physical illness, according to a new survey.People who call in sick are more likely to be suffering from low job satisfaction than a physical illness, according to a new survey.

If you think that colleague who called in sick this morning is at home suffering while you take up the slack, think again.

A new survey suggests that physical illness is unlikely to be the cause of their absence.

The online study involving more than 9,000 people across the Middle East and North Africa by Bayt.com, found that a lack of responsibility and low job satisfaction ranked highest on a list of reasons for missing work, at more than 22 per cent respectively.

Demotivation was cited by just over 12 per cent of people, followed by bad employee or manager relations at more than 9 per cent and then home and family responsibilities at 7.5 per cent.

Medical and health conditions were cited as a reason by more than 7 per cent of people, followed by job stress and feeling overworked, which came in at 6 per cent each.

Almost two thirds of respondents said they "very rarely' take unplanned or unapproved days off. But almost 12 per cent admitted to doing so once a month.

So what is the solution?

Recognise and reward regular attendance and punctuality, according to about half of the respondents. Almost a fifth think a strict absenteeism policy is the best way forward, while 9 per cent believe that educating employees on the costs of absenteeism will act as a deterrent.

Around 60 per cent said their company tracks absenteeism through a programme with 'strict policies', but more than 28 per cent said that while the company tracks absences, no serious measures are ever taken.

Employers state that there are significant knock-on effects to absenteeism, and yet our survey has shown that there are a considerable number of companies that do not follow through on consequences for employees consistently taking unplanned leaves," said Suhail Masri, vice president of sales at Bayt.com.

"This suggests that stronger measures should be considered, to ensure overall profitability and smoother operational functions," he added.