Job abandonment: It’s a topic no one wants to discuss. It’s stressful and confusing for the team members left to pick up the slack. But it doesn’t have to be. Keep reading this ultimate guide on job abandonment in shift work so you can stay on top of it and even prevent it from happening.
What is job abandonment?
Also known as employee ghosting, job abandonment occurs when an employee doesn’t appear for work for three consecutive days. When an employee takes this action, they’ve abandoned the job.
However, many factors are in play, especially in shift work, and there are some standard rules to follow. It’s up to you to decide how many days of absence equate to workplace abandonment. It’s best to have an empathetic perspective on job abandonment — especially with the diverse workforce shift-based businesses often have.
You’ll need to use your best judgment to determine what a no-call, no-show is and what represents a pattern of behaviors. For example, a medical emergency may prevent staff from performing their duties and contacting you. On their next shift, the employee might come and explain why they couldn’t make contact.
Are there any job abandonment laws?
In the US, there are no federal or state laws defining job abandonment, although each state's case law provides guidelines for employers — more on that later. Therefore, it’s your responsibility to define workplace abandonment for your business.
Reasons employees may abandon their jobs
According to Gallup, the top five reasons people abandon their jobs are:
Pay/benefits
Personal reasons
Relocation
Direct supervisor/manager or senior leadership
Career advancement opportunities
But more specifically, what about shift work? Here are some common reasons for job abandonment in shift work.
1. New job opportunity
The other job could offer better pay, a more flexible schedule, or better benefits. In industries with high turnover, like retail and food service, job abandonment for this reason is particularly common.
2. Burnout
Burnout is common in shift-based work. Various stressors can cause burnout, especially if management isn’t addressing concerns. Some staff just hit a certain point and simply don’t return.
3. Tension with coworkers/manager
If employees don’t feel connected to their coworkers or dislike management, they might leave and not return. It’s difficult to go to work every day when you know you will be interacting with people you don’t get along with. The challenge becomes greater when employees feel the work environment brings conflict.
4. Personal emergency/life change
Sometimes, when employees abandon their jobs, it has nothing to do with the employer. Instead, it’s due to something changing in their life. An employee could experience a medical or family emergency or a significant life change, like moving to a new state.
5. Unpredictable schedule
Knowing the schedule is essential in shift work. When staff members aren’t informed about their schedules in advance, it causes stress and frustration. They have to plan their lives around their schedules, and inconsistencies or poor communication may result in job abandonment.
Employee scheduling software can reduce the time spent on creating schedules and provide access to everyone who needs to know. Check out how Deputy’s scheduling capabilities can help improve work life for your frontline employees and your scheduling managers.
6. Fear of confrontation
Some people, particularly younger workers, abandon their jobs because they are too embarrassed or scared to quit. They may not want to face their managers or coworkers.
7. Lack of future in the role
If a staff member sees no future in their career, they’re more likely to abandon their job. It may seem easier to leave than to share their concerns with managers. They may also choose this path to reflect their perception of the effort given by management.
How Job Abandonment Impacts Businesses
Shift-based business leaders can face many consequences of job abandonment. The top three are:
1. Replacement costs
According to Gallup, replacing a frontline employee costs 40% of their salary. That’s a lot of money, especially in businesses with high job abandonment or turnover rates. This estimate includes the time spent on hiring and training new employees or even overtime costs to cover the missing employee.
Recommended:5 Tips to Reduce Labor Costs
2. Productivity issues
When someone abandons their job, it causes operation disruptions. Examples of disruptions can include a slower work pace, increased work for remaining employees, and additional overtime shifts and wages. These issues will ultimately affect profitability and business reputation if you can’t backfill the position fast enough.
3. More pressure on other employees
Of course, when your business is down a person, other workers have to pick up the slack. This increases their stress in the workplace, which can lead to burnout if not managed properly.
No-call, no-show vs. job abandonment termination
A no-call, no-show doesn’t automatically lead to workplace abandonment. Staff may no-call, no-show for a single shift periodically — for instance, one day every six months. By spreading out missed days, an employee isn’t missing multiple consecutive days, which is a requirement of true job abandonment.
However, no-call, no-shows are disruptive and add to labor costs. This is particularly the case if an employer is under the jurisdiction of predictive scheduling legislation, which requires employers to compensate employees for last-minute schedule changes.
The no-call, no-show termination process
Take the following actions before starting the no-call, no-show termination of employment process:
Try to make contact: Make every attempt to contact your employee to find out why they’re absent and didn’t make contact. If the employee has a medical condition, they may be covered under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Firing someone who’s covered by the FMLA violates this law.
Be consistent: You must enforce your job abandonment policy fairly for all employees. Regardless of whether the employee who regularly does no-call, no-shows is your top salesperson, all employees need to see you’re committed to applying your policy.
Discuss the issue: If an employee is constantly pulling a no-call, no-show, you should discuss it with them to discover the problem. Impress the importance of notifying the right person when they’re unable to attend work. Also, explain to them how their behavior negatively impacts the team.
Document the incidents: All incidents of no-call, no-shows must be documented. Having your employees use a designated system to notify you of non-attendance will make record-keeping easier.
Remind them of the consequences: Remind the employee who’s no-call, no-showing that they can be terminated for this behavior. Refer them to the fact that they have signed a form stating that they have read and understood the no-call, no-show policy in the employee handbook.
Follow through: If your employee continues with their no-call, no-show behavior, you will need to implement your policy. Enforcing your no-call, no-show policy will deter other employees from following the previous employee’s example.
Give them their final wages: Ensure your employee receives the money owed to them, including commissions and overtime. You cannot hold their wages, even if your employee has your business property and you want it back.
Make record-keeping easy with Deputy
How to prevent legal troubles when determining job abandonment
While there are no job abandonment laws, businesses can face legal trouble due to unfair firing practices if they aren’t careful when identifying workplace abandonment. If you have concerns about compliance, check out Deputy’s US Compliance Hub.
Here’s how businesses can protect themselves when determining job abandonment.
Define your job abandonment policy
Your job abandonment policy should detail:
Call-out notices and job abandonment: Explain how much notice is needed if an employee can’t work. In addition to giving notice, detail how many successive days your employee can miss work without notice before it’s considered workplace abandonment.
Disciplinary process: Describe the action that will be taken against employees who fail to notify management of their absence within the specified timeframe.
Notification options: Explain what the employee should do if they’re not in a position to notify you. Let your employees know whether a friend or family member can contact you on their behalf.
Ultimate conclusion: Provide details about how you’ll make the final decision as to whether you will terminate employment on the grounds of job abandonment.
This policy needs to be added to the employee handbook that is given to every employee, along with a form requiring a signature verifying that they have read and understood the terms.
Send a job abandonment letter
You must notify your employee in writing that you will terminate their employment if they fail to make contact. The letter should specify that, in line with your policy, the employee will be terminated by a specific date if they fail to make contact with a proper reason for missing work and not informing you.
The job abandonment letter should be sent using registered mail with a return receipt as proof that the notification has been served. All attempts to contact the employee should be recorded, and the dates and times of phone calls, voicemails, texts, emails, or other communication should be documented.
If the employee fails to make contact within the specified time, you should follow your termination procedure and:
Make updates to your employee’s file with the dates that they were terminated.
If applicable, send your employee health insurance and COBRA forms.
Ensure that payroll is accurate to pay the employee everything that they’re entitled to receive.
Always remember to liaise with HR and a legal professional before you send the job abandonment letter to protect your business in the event of legal action from your former employee.
Reducing job abandonment in the workplace
Here are four simple ways to reduce job abandonment and retain employees.
1. Ensure employees understand your job abandonment policy
Employees should understand your policy from the very beginning. Ensure managers review the policy and answer any new staff questions. Also, include the full policy in the employee handbook for easy reference.
2. Offer flexible scheduling
Employee-friendly scheduling is crucial for reducing job abandonment in shift-based work. Not only should staff have easy access to schedules 24/7, but there should also be some flexibility when possible.
When referring to flexible schedules, we mean creating more of a partnership for scheduling rather than making it one-sided. This effort goes beyond working with employees’ personal schedules. It’s letting employees communicate with one another to swap shifts when the need arises. Offering flexibility can prevent no-call, no-shows and reduce abandonments.
Offering this type of partnership can empower employees and help them feel more in control of their schedules. Deputy’s collaboration software makes creating such a partnership easy.
3. Offer a fair time off policy
Managing employee leave is difficult in shift work due to the number of employees working for you. You must create a balanced policy that gives employees access to the time off they want while keeping the business running. When people can’t get the time off they need, they may simply stop showing up.
Learn how to create a leave policy everyone will love.
4. Create a supportive work environment
Shift work is difficult, and employees need a supportive work environment. Create a positive atmosphere through open communication, engaging with employees, and listening to their feedback. Knowing what’s happening helps prevent low morale, a key contributor to job abandonment.
Tools like pulse surveys and anonymous feedback forms can go a long way. As you work on improving things, ensure employees know what changes you are implementing — even small steps show you are listening to them.
Job abandonment doesn’t have to disrupt your business
Job abandonment is stressful, but you can take steps to reduce its occurrence in your workplace. By addressing the causes of workplace abandonment and being proactive as a manager or business owner, you can minimize the chances of abandonment occurring.
Set clear rules and use all the tools available to make daily operations easier for your team. Investing in software like Deputy can streamline tasks and take the stress out of scheduling.
Contact us today to try Deputy for free.
