Understanding absenteeism in public transport operations

Given how hard it can be to attract and recruit new staff, retention is a must for public transport organisations. That brings us to absenteeism – a rising workforce challenge.

Absenteeism is the habitual or unplanned absence of an employee from their job. There are many reasons that someone would skip work, good or bad, and this makes the issue complex. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. But by understanding the challenge, the needs of our sector’s employees, and the action plans that organisations must employ, we can improve the lives of public transport workers.

Between late 2023 and early 2024, UITP carried out a survey of 20 operators in 13 countries and territories to explore the severity of the situation and devise clear recommendations on how to manage it.

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Discover six action plans to enable organisations to develop targeted strategies. This report offers a versatile framework based on a comprehensive analysis of absentee personas, which can be adapted to each organisation’s unique needs and goals.

• Introduction
  • Context
  • Foreword
  • Methodology
• Review: absenteeism in numbers
• Consequences of absenteeism
• Understanding the different types of absenteeism
• 8 staff personas
• 6 action plans and illustrations
• Next steps
  • Conclusion
  • Perspectives within UITP
  • Acknowledgements

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