Does your workplace suffer from employees who are frequently late for work? If so, you aren't alone. A recent survey about reasons why employees are late to work, conducted by CareerBuilder.com, shows that 15% of workers are late for work at least once a week. That number is down from 16% in 2009 and 20% in 2008. They speculate that the reduced late for work percentages are due to the recession.
In the CareerBuilder.com survey, employee excuses for being late for work ranged from the expected - to the unexpected. These were the most common excuses offered about why employees were late for work.
- Delayed by traffic: 30%
- Late to work because of lack of sleep: 19%
- Bad weather: 9%
- Delay in getting kids to day care or school: 8%
CareerBuilder found that other common excuses employees claimed caused them to be late for work included public transportation problems, wardrobe issues, or dealing with pets.
Best Excuses Employees Make About Why They're Late for Work
I've dealt with lots of strange, fabricated, wild, and crazy excuses about why employees came late to work. One of my best ever was the afternoon shift employee who claimed that her grandfather's funeral had run much longer than expected - forgetting that this was the third grandfather whose funeral attendance she had claimed.
Another employee had to borrow money for gas, perhaps not so crazy in that his wages were being garnished at the max. A brave employee said that he was so hung over that he had to stop for breakfast. CareerBuilder heard some best employee excuses, too.
How about you? What's the funniest, weirdest, oddest, most unusual excuse an employee has offered you about why he or she was late for work? Have more than one? Share all of them.
Manage Employee Attendance
Want to know how to manage employees who are late for work? You can manage employee attendance problems with these ideas for the supervisor.
Image Copyright Krystian Kaczmarski
More Related to Why Employees Are Late for Work
People do come to work sick, but they should be discouraged from doing so if they have something contagious. One person with the flu can cause an entire office to be shut down for days. Got strep or strep like symptoms? Stay home!
Do you want 20 people off for 5 days or one!
Its simple math.
What an empty article this is.
Instead of the superficial causes, look at the deep ones.
What the excuses are not interesting at all.
Why are they _really_ late?
Proper way would be some type of intelligently done research but I would speculate that the following are real causes:
- because they asked to work overtime without their consent (they are forced to do so or they are afraid to decline to keep the job)
- because they don’t enjoy what they are doing
(bad work placement and match)
- they don’t have enough support or help from co-workers/team and/or boss
- the work hours are too strict or too much already
(even 9-5 or 9-6 could be too much, 40 hours is amazing time per week; why not work 20 or 30 hours per week!! employees/employers need a new paradigm; work as much as you need or something)
- they have not had a chance to take a proper vacation
- they need some hiatus
(they have been working all the time and not having enough life; it has been work, work, work)
- the work is not aligned with their real interests and life goals/purpose
“say what you need to say”
I agree 100% with what you say Alex. Somehow employers the world over conveniently forget that their employees could be overworked and might have a “LIFE”!!!
And the article did nothing for me either!
Corporate America does not have to wake up. YOU need to wake up and realize that being late to work is unprofessional, disrepectful, and just plain stupid. Why in the world would you be late to work when your schedule says to be there at a certain time? Let me guess its the lame excuse that you were up late or your not a morning person. LAME LAME LAME. You are adults not children, save the excuses for the 8 year olds who can’t turn in there homework on time. If your boss tells you to be there at 9 o’clock sharp than you should be there at 9 o’clock sharp. Not 9:02 or 9:05.you should be there at 9:00. You may think that you can make up for being late by staying later but guess what? YOUR BOSS WANTS YOU THERE ON TIME!! You may not be needed after your scheduled hours. These days the “ADULTS” in this world are more like kids. They think they can be late to work and not have any punishments. Well guess what world, if you want to get yourself fired, be my guest and get to work late because there are a select few who are willing to be to work on time and they dont have 8 year old excuses as to why they are late. So a summary of it all: Dont use some lame 8 year old excuse as to why you are late to work, be an adult and get to work on time, you are no better than your kids if you use an excuse. America’s work force needs to grow up and take responsibility.
You’re late because you’re not motivated to work and you lack the enthusiasm anymore.
“Why not work 20 or 30 hours per week?”
Alex, you should move to France or something.