Absenteeism and Presenteeism among American Workers

Labor force exit due to disability is often preceded by a gradual decline in health. Frequent or increased rates of absence from work or presenteeism (working while sick) could serve as a signal that a worker has begun transitioning out of the labor force. We analyze the relationship between absences, presenteeism and work outcomes using data from the American Working Conditions Survey and the American Life Panel. We establish baseline trends in absences and presenteeism for a nationally representative sample of U.S. workers and relate contemporaneous patterns in absences, presenteeism and interactions between the two behaviors to labor force outcomes three years later. Our findings indicate that on average absence rates and productivity losses when working while sick are quite low in the overall population. The median worker takes only one absence per year, and the average productivity loss while working sick is 20 percent. Secondly, absenteeism and presenteeism are highly positively correlated. Finally, we find no relationship between labor force outcomes and either absence rates or presenteeism except for individuals in the extreme right tail of the absence distribution. Workers with absence rates above the 95th percentile and who engage in presenteeism have a significantly reduced probability of working or participating in the labor force three years later. These findings suggest it could be useful to target individuals with significant deviations from the normal patterns of absence for additional screening or intervention.