Absence Management: Explanation, Tips & Tools

What is absence management?

Absence management refers to the planning, administration, and documentation of absences in the daily work routine. This includes vacation times, sick days, parental leave, or other reasons that prevent employees from working. The goal is to record absences in a timely manner and to deal with them accordingly.

Types of absence in the company

In everyday business operations, various types of absences occur, both planned and unplanned. Here are a few examples:

• Planned Vacation: Employees take recreational leave that is applied for and approved in advance.
• Illness: Unforeseen absence due to health impairments.
• Parental leave: A period of leave from work granted for child care and upbringing.
• Special leave: Time off for special occasions such as a wedding, the birth of a child, or bereavement.
• Unpaid leave: Exemption from work without continuation of salary payment, for example for personal projects or travel.
• Educational leave: Exemption for participation in further education measures.
• Business trips: Absence due to business travel on behalf of the employer.
• Company holidays: Vacation periods determined by the employer during which the company is closed.
• Home office: working from home; does not count as absence in the traditional sense, but requires fixed rules.

Legal regulations for absence management in Germany

In Germany, various laws regulate the absences of employees. The central law is the Federal Leave Act (BUrlG), which establishes the entitlement to paid recreational leave. According to § 3 BUrlG, the statutory minimum leave is 24 working days per year for a six-day week. For a five-day week, this corresponds to 20 working days.

In addition to the Federal Leave Act, there are other relevant laws:

• Continued Remuneration Act (EFZG): It governs the continuation of pay in the event of illness for up to six weeks.
• Maternity Protection Act (MuSchG): This law protects expectant mothers before and after childbirth, including employment bans and financial security.
• Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act (BEEG): It defines the entitlements to parental leave and parental allowance for the care and upbringing of children.

The importance of a structured absence management

A well-organized absence management system is the key to a stable and functioning workday routine. Unplanned absences can not only delay projects but also lead to overload within the team. When clear regulations are missing, the risk of conflicts and misunderstandings increases – both among colleagues and between employees and management.

Structured planning allows for mitigating failures. For instance, early coordination of vacation schedules can ensure that sufficient staff remains available. Also, in the event of sudden sick reports, a clear system helps to quickly organize a substitute and maintain the workflow.

In this regard, companies of all sizes benefit from such an approach. Small teams are often more affected by individual absences. In larger companies, on the other hand, coordinating many employees is a challenge. A well-thought-out absence management ensures that in both cases, an overview is maintained and unnecessary stress is avoided.

It is also important not to overlook the increasing satisfaction of the team. When absences are poorly planned, individual employees have to compensate for them. It is equally important that there is enough time for everyone to plan their vacation and that arrangements are made for a substitute during an absence.

Best Practices for Successful Absence Management

If you consider a few things, absences in your company will be easier to manage. This will relieve your team and ensure transparency and fairness.

Tips for Better Absence Management

Effective absence management starts with establishing clear processes and rules. Leave requests, sick reports, and other absences should be handled in a standardized manner to avoid misunderstandings and delays. It is important that employees always know who to contact and what deadlines or formalities need to be observed.

Proactive planning is another essential aspect. Regular team meetings help to avoid overlaps, for example when several employees want to take vacation at the same time. Especially during periods of high workload or holiday seasons, an early exchange is important to ensure capacity.

You should also pay attention to transparency within the team. All team members should have access to a clear calendar that shows planned absences. This creates a mutual understanding of availability within the team, and arranging cover becomes easier.

Why software helps with absence management

Manual methods such as Excel spreadsheets or email arrangements are often prone to errors and time-consuming. This is where software comes into play: Specialized tools not only make planning easier but also automate many processes that were previously done manually. With the right software, absences can be centrally recorded, approval processes optimized, and conflicts avoided.

Another advantage of software lies in its flexibility: it can accommodate different types of absences such as vacation, sickness, special leave, or parental leave and display them clearly. Furthermore, many systems offer features like automatic reminders or calendar integration, which significantly simplify daily routines.

7 Benefits of Absence Management Software:

• Time saving in planning
• Transparency for the entire team
• Automated approval processes
• Customization options
• Error reduction through automation
• Integration into existing tools
• Long-term overview and reports

Absence management with absentify

Absentify offers a comprehensive solution that makes absence planning for companies of any size simpler and more transparent. The software combines ease of use with versatile features and full integration into Microsoft 365. Without new logins or additional desktop apps.

Deep integration into Microsoft 365

Absentify integrates seamlessly into the Microsoft 365 environment and allows for managing absences directly through Microsoft Teams, Outlook, and SharePoint. By using the existing Microsoft account, the need for separate logins is eliminated.

Personalized calendars

Employees can plan their absences in a personal calendar and view remaining vacation days. Manual calculations are eliminated, and an overview is maintained at all times.

Flexible management of absence types

Vacation, sick days, unpaid days, or special leave – absentify allows for the customization of various types of absence. Approval processes and restrictions, such as preventing simultaneous absences in critical departments, can be flexibly defined.

Department management and minimum staffing levels

The software helps companies organize employees into departments and ensure minimum staffing levels. Overlaps in absence requests are automatically detected, which significantly simplifies planning.

Holiday calendar and working hours

With access to holiday calendars from over 250 countries, annual planning can be made more precise. Working hours and specific plans can be defined for individual team members to take into account their individual requirements.

Integration into other tools

Absentify integrates seamlessly with popular programs such as Slack, SAP, Salesforce, and many others. This allows for synchronization of absence data, and improves team collaboration.

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With absence management towards a smooth workday routine

A well-thought-out absence management is not a luxury, but a necessity for every company. Clear processes, proactive planning, and the use of modern tools help to better cope with absences and maintain an overview.

Absentify is particularly helpful. With its features, from personalized calendars to automated approval processes, it significantly eases the management of absences. At the same time, it ensures transparency and flexibility, which are indispensable in an increasingly dynamic work environment.

A well-thought-out absence management means less chaos and more composure – for executives as well as employees. With absentify, you are well-prepared to make the workday efficient and stress-free.