984: How to Address Chronic Attendance Issues – Alan Twigg

Things happen, and your team will be late or absent. But when does it become a problem, and what can you do about it? In this episode, Kirk Behrendt brings back Alan Twigg, president of Bent Ericksen & Associates, to help you navigate and address chronic attendance issues that are happening in your practice. To learn how to get your team to show up for you and your patients, listen to Episode 984 of The Best Practices Show!

Learn More About Alan:

• Give Alan a call: (800) 679-2760
• Send Alan an email: alan@bentericksen.com 
• Join Bent Ericksen on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BentEricksenAssociates
• Learn more about Bent Ericksen: https://bentericksen.com

More Helpful Links for a Better Practice & a Better Life:

• Subscribe to The Best Practices Show: https://the-best-practices-show.captivate.fm/listen
• Join The Best Practices Association: https://www.actdental.com/bpa
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Apple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/best-practices-association/id6738960360
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.actdental.join&hl=en_US
• Join ACT’s To The Top Study Club: https://www.actdental.com/ttt
• Get The Best Practices Magazine for free: https://www.actdental.com/magazine
• Please leave us a review on the podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-best-practices-show-with-kirk-behrendt/id1223838218

Episode Resources:

• Watch the video version of Episode 984: https://www.youtube.com/@actdental/videos

Main Takeaways:

• Understand your state, county, and city rules around attendance, sick leave, and PTO.
• When you don't address chronic attendance issues, your good employees will leave.
• Avoid creating policies that are too strict or rigid. They will come back to bite you.
• Know the requirements, limitations, and nuances around getting doctor's notes.
• Always document your employees’ reasons for tardies and absences.

Snippets:

0:00 Introduction.

1:38 Alan’s background.

2:26 Why this is an important topic.

3:55 Mandatory sick leave, explained.

6:16 Document the reason for an absence.

9:46 Things to know about requiring doctor’s notes.

13:00 Attendance, sick leave, and PTO policies.

15:22 Categorize the reasons for absences and tardies.

17:52 Let them use their time.

20:34 Don't solve your team members’ problems.

23:50 Your employee says they're sick, but . . .

27:02 Leave of absence, explained.

28:02 Being chronically late versus chronically absent.

30:22 Final thoughts.

31:44 More about Bent Ericksen and how to get in touch.

Alan Twigg Bio:

Alan Twigg is the president of Bent Ericksen & Associates. For over 10 years, he has guided thousands of clients and consultants through the ever-changing world of HR and employment compliance. He is a speaker, consultant, and author who is passionate about bringing education and peace of mind to such a confusing topic.

As a strong proponent of symbiotic employer-employee relations, Alan is passionate about teamwork and positive work cultures, with an emphasis on long-term personnel retention and employment compliance, where his solutions-oriented outlook excels.