RELEVANT
FOCUSED
READY

Examining the Impact of Presenteeism in Policing
Sebastien Therrien

Introduction

Relevant literature has been analysed and reviewed to identify evidence
surrounding presenteeism in this research paper. Organizations do not
only suffer large costs stemming from individuals exhibiting absenteeism;
literature in this research demonstrates that presenteeism, which
precedes absenteeism, is an additional and marginally explored aspect
that reflects hidden costs (Cancelliere & Cassidy, 2011). According to
Ruskin (2016), the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has paid its
members more than $1 billion of overtime since 2009; people who have
recently retired from the RCMP testify that this has had a key impact on
many who have been working long hours who are now stressed,
overworked and depressed. This research has been conducted for the
purpose of exploring characteristics and identifying solutions related to
presenteeism in order to minimize and/or avoid future losses of
productivity for businesses and workforces.

Background

The primary aim in this research is the examination of causes leading to
prensenteeism. Police who are suffering prensenteeism can have a
negative impact on themselves, their co-workers, their department and
the public (Leineweber et al., 2011). Essentially, decreased and losses in
productivity and/or decreased levels of performances at work can stem
from presenteeism. Deery, Walsh & Zatzick (2014) state that severe
policies and severe disciplinary measures can make employees hesitate
to take time off even when they sincerely need to. Furthermore, their
study argued that “the fear associated with taking sick leave had made
absenteeism a ‘risk-taking’ activity rather than a health promoting
decision thereby encouraging presenteeism” (p. 355).

Methods

The articles in the literature review portion was primarily researched
through the Library SearchMe! Database system, accessible to students
at the Justice Institute of British Columbia (JIBC). Non-scholarly articles
such as news articles were also used for the literature portion to
supplement the research.
A literature search was conducted and the following keywords and terms
were used to find content: Presenteeism, Absenteeism, Anxious worker,
Employee well-being, Work well-being, Social exchange theory,
Conservation of resources theory, Emotional exhaustion, Overtime, Work
Overload and Role Overload. Note that all these keywords were also tied
with the terms “police” and/or “law enforcement” in order to narrow
down and be more specific about the subject. The research was also
refined by limiting the findings to full-text, peer-reviewed articles from
2007 to 2017.

Results/Findings

According to Lerner (2016), it is difficult to identify someone
experiencing presenteeism because of the following characteristics: It
does not have a physical reality (height or weight); It is not entirely a
characteristic of the person; it occurs with an exposure to a
task/challenge/context; It has an experimental component (p. 8).
The main themes identified in the literature were attendance
enforcement and the effects of overtime, work/role overload and
inadequate management in a workplace. Duxbury & Higgins (2012)
indicated that the typical police officer in one of their samples spent 53.5
hours in work per week overall (including supplemental work at home
and commuting) and as such can be considered to be high risk with
respect to high work-life conflict, stress, depressed mood, absenteeism
and poorer physical health (p. 26). Research by Deery, Walsh & Zatzick
(2014) concluded that both work overload and attendance enforcement
were positively related to employees’ decisions to attend work while ill
(p. 364). As demonstrated in Duxbury & Higgins’ (2012) study, “police
officers who reported to a non-supportive manager are twice as likely as
those who reported to a supportive manager to report high levels of
stress and depressed moods” (p. 80).

Retrieved from http://www.stresslessoffice.com/workplace-wellness/

Bachelor of Law Enforcement Studies

Discussion

The elements that have been discussed in all of these themes all have shown to
be contributors of presenteeism. It was determined that the adaptive coping
strategies were used by employees who tried to view stressors through positive
lens, who requested for social support and tried to eliminate their stressors. In
contrast, a maladaptive coping strategy is the employee who will have the
tendency to vent emotions, who will make use of drug or alcohol, or who will
emotionally distance themselves from situations (Padyab, Backteman-Erlanson
& Brulin, 2016). Results in lack of productivity is prominent in presenteeism and
it is costly to employers.
Upon conducting the research, it was noted that not all the articles and data
related to policing or law enforcement; most related to civilian workforces.
Selecting the appropriate articles was challenging therefore close examination
was crucial and the valued information gathered was then compiled and
directly applied to information that came from law enforcement research.

Conclusions or Recommendations

In order to identify individuals who suffer presenteeism Lerner (2016)
recommends an indirect assessment relying on self-report. She created a test
that relies on human responses, the Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ).
Upon completing the questionnaire, assessors can determine the level of
productivity that has been lost, in comparison to previous assessments.
In order to reduce presenteeism and reduce the human and economic burdens,
Lerner (2016) recommends the “Be Well at Work Program” (BWAW). She
indicates that the program is employee centered, uses a functional approach
addressing the medical, psychological and work factors that influence outcome,
care is customized to employee preferences and needs, and is coordinated with
primary care and/or behavioral healthcare for depression (p. 22). Lerner’s
(2016) findings concluded that their program was superior to usual care in
restoring work performance and productivity and that it improved mental
health to levels obtained with antidepressants (p. 27).

References

Cancelliere, C., Cassidy, J. D., Ammendolia, C., & Côté, P. (2011). Are workplace
health promotion programs effective at improving presenteeism in workers? A
systematic review and best evidence synthesis of the literature. BMC Public Health,
11(1), 395. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-11-395
Deery, S., Walsh, J., & Zatzick, C. D. (2014). A moderated mediation analysis of
job demands, presenteeism, and absenteeism. Journal of Occupational and
Organizational Psychology, 87(2), 352-369. doi:10.1111/joop.12051
Duxbury, L., & Higgins, C. (2012). Caring for and about those who serve: Work-life
conflict and employee well being within Canada’s police departments. [Ottawa, ON]
Sprott School of Business, Carleton University
Leineweber, C., Westerlund, H., Hagberg, J., Svedberg, P., Luokkala, M., &
Alexanderson, K. (2011). Sickness presenteeism among Swedish police officers. Journal
of Occupational Rehabilitation, 21(1), 17-22. doi:10.1007/s10926-010-9249-1
Lerner, D. (2016) The be well at work program helps workers with depression feel better
and
perform
better.
[PowerPoint].
Retrieved
from
http://www.cirpd.org/Webinars/Pages/Webinar.aspx?wbID=111
Padyab, M., Backteman-Erlanson, S., & Brulin, C. (2016). Burnout, coping, stress of
conscience and psychosocial work environment among patrolling police
officers. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 31(4), 229-237. doi:10.1007/s11896015-9189-y
Ruskin, B. (2016). $1B RCMP overtime bill proof of ‘exhausted and depressed’ members,
retirees say. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/rcmp-overtime-billburnout-police-health-retirees-1.3752805

Retrieved from https://hba.edu.au/registered-training-organisation/employee-health-is-it-affecting-your-business/

Justice Institute of British Columbia