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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of line managers in managing attendance at work in the lean regime of grocery retailing. The increasing competitiveness within the sector, coupled with the sophisticated control systems in place put pressure on managers to keep labour costs low. Attendance, therefore, becomes a critical factor, particularly as staffing levels become leaner. Taking this into account, it is necessary to understand the parameters of the line managers’ role in managing attendance, especially within the lean food retail market and the antagonistic terrain of the supermarket shop floor. The paper discusses the impact of lean retailing on line managers’ authority and provides a fresh sociological analysis regarding their role in managing attendance, offering insights into managerial practices on the UK supermarket shop floor.

The paper draws on qualitative research evidence from two case study grocery retail organizations in the UK. It reports on 44 semi-structured interviews and provides a multi-level analysis aiming to understand the different perspectives on the problem examined.

The paper reveals the existence of a centralized absence management policy and highlights the greater involvement of line managers in this procedure. Line managers though were subjected to forces of bureaucratic control, intensification and degradation of their work. Despite having an active role within the attendance management process and high responsibility for the implementation of rules and procedures handed down by head office, they had limited authority over the process. Line managers perceived the latter as routine and a box-ticking exercise and had developed coping tactics to deal with the control from above.

This paper provides practical and theoretical considerations over the role of line management in the labour process, investigating their role in managing attendance at work within the lean terrain of food retailing. This research contributes to the ongoing academic discussions related to the devolvement of HR responsibilities to the line, highlighting the great involvement of line managers in the absence policy. It also provides a sociological perspective over line managers’ authority and discretion in managing attendance, revealing that they were subjected to direct and bureaucratic control within their role in attendance management. However, the research reveals that line managers were not passive in the face of direct control from above and had developed tactics to cope with the monotony and the repetition of this process, attempting to somehow escape the top-down control they were subjected to.

How much work is “too much” for children aged 10–14 in Egypt? Our narrow focus here is on “work that does not interfere with school attendance.” For girls, work includes time spent in household chores and subsistence activities. We estimate simultaneous hours of work and school attendance equations as a joint Tobit and Probit model, then conduct simulations. Substantial negative effects on attendance are observed above about 10 hours per week (girls) and 14 hours (boys). For girls, heavy household work appears causal, but for boys, it seems that poor schooling leads to boys' dropout, then subsequent work.

This paper seeks to give an overview of some ongoing research into absence management practices in a UK university library. The aim of the research in question is to evaluate the effectiveness of current management practices.

The research collected quantitative data over time and the present paper presents a summary of findings and recommendations to practitioners in the same field.

The research findings indicate that the use of return to work interviews after each absence through illness contributes to the reduction in absence levels. The research recommends that firm guidelines be used to ensure consistency in approach; that employee awareness is increased of their own responsibility to attend for work wherever possible. Where a culture of absenteeism exists, it is suggested that appropriate management strategies can produce a culture of attendance. Within academic libraries, this is possible where there is an involvement of human resource departments, with a structure for referring employees, where applicable, to occupational health. This work highlights the need for employers to get value for money from their library resources and recommends absence management as an important component in any agenda for change.

Given the potential sensitivity of the subject area, the anonymity of members of staff had to be a priority, therefore, some of the data analysis could not be carried out as in‐depth as may have been optimally desirable.

The present research provides case study experience for other practitioners, and suggests some recommendations for library managers.

The present research highlights the dearth of literature or benchmarking facilities on absence management within library and information services (LIS). The research is therefore exploratory in nature and goes some way to address the research gap.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a model in which work centrality, locus of control, polychronicity, preference for gender‐role differentiation, and perceived social support were expected to vary between nations and to be associated with general perceptions of absence legitimacy and self‐reported absenteeism.

Data were collected from 1,535 employees working in ten large multinationals organizations, mostly in the consumer products and technology sectors located in nine countries.

The explanatory variables differed significantly across countries, as did perceived legitimacy, responses to absence scenarios, and self‐reported absence. The variables of interest, as a package, partially mediated the association between country and one dimension of legitimacy and country and the scenario responses.

Although absenteeism from work is a universal phenomenon, there is very little cross‐cultural research on the subject. This study has implications for filling this critical research gap. Limitations of this research are the use of convenience sampling and self‐reported absence data.

From a practical standpoint, this study demonstrates that organizations which attempt to develop corporate‐wide attendance policies that span national borders should take indigenous norms and expectations concerning absenteeism into consideration. Additionally, in an increasingly mobile global workforce, how does an individual who has been socialized in a nation where absence is generally viewed as a more legitimate behavior behave in a nation where it is viewed as less so?

This study illustrates the value of the legitimacy construct for studying absenteeism, both within and between nations. It also illustrates the value of building models incorporating variables that accommodate both cross‐national variation and individual differences within nations.

Studies two Northern Ireland manufacturing companies, Shirtco and Carpetco, to generate some quantitative data concerning possible attitudinal and behavioural outcomes of quality circle (QC) participation. Attention focused on three variables: (1) the attitudes of QC participants and those of comparable non‐participants to the work situation; (2) the quantity and quality of output achieved by QC participants and by comparable non‐participants; and (3) the short‐term absence rates of QC participants and comparable non‐participants. An attempt also was made to measure participants′ attitudes to the QC programmes. The findings at Carpetco were not encouraging, as attitudes towards QC participation were ambivalent, and there was little statistically significant evidence of QC participation producing a positive influence on attitudes or on the quantity and quality of output. Nor was there any evidence of the QC programme having generated significant cost‐savings. However, QC participation may have reduced the tendency to take casual days off work. The situation at Shirtco was rather different, as in one of the three work sections studied, QC participation may have had a positive influence on attitudes, quantity of output and amount of time spent on productive work, but not on attendance. The position regarding the other two work sections studied at Shirtco was much more equivocal. There was no evidence of any significant cost‐savings having emanated from the QC programme at Shirtco. Concludes that unless a QC initiative is accompanied by other changes in the general work situation, it will almost certainly produce marginal benefits at best. Quality circles are probably used to best effect when they comprise part of a wider initiative such as total quality management (TQM). Perhaps it is as a means of helping to put aspects of TQM into effect that the real value of QCs will be demonstrated.

An employee who is eligible to make a complaint for unfair dismissal has to prove that he has been dismissed by the employer if the employer contests that the employee has in fact been dismissed. If the dismissal is not contested, all the employee has to do is to show that he has been dismissed. This constitutes the first stage of the proceedings in an industrial tribunal.

Recent experiments with changes in work week structure from ‘rigid’ to ‘flexible’ have alerted employers and employees to the possibility of varying existing hours arrangements. The decision to change (or not to change) is often based on inadequate consideration of the consequences and an incomplete identification and analysis of all the available alternatives. Different degrees and forms of ‘flexibility’ may be appropriate for different work situations. The decision‐maker must appraise the work situations under his control and determine from the alternatives available which particular structure(s) are most suitable. To this end it is necessary, firstly, to conceptualize about the major variables in work week structures and then to develop a model which will allow the work situation characteristics to be ‘matched’ with a suitable work week structure. Research carried out in the Department of Management Studies at Loughborough University indicates that a ‘contingency’ model seems most appropriate.

Addresses the standardization of the measurements and the labels for concepts commonly used in the study of work organizations. As a reference handbook and research tool, seeks to improve measurement in the study of work organizations and to facilitate the teaching of introductory courses in this subject. Focuses solely on work organizations, that is, social systems in which members work for money. Defines measurement and distinguishes four levels: nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio. Selects specific measures on the basis of quality, diversity, simplicity and availability and evaluates each measure for its validity and reliability. Employs a set of 38 concepts ‐ ranging from “absenteeism” to “turnover” as the handbook’s frame of reference. Concludes by reviewing organizational measurement over the past 30 years and recommending future measurement reseach.

Viewed in the context of liberalization, privatization and globalization, the socio-economic and legal environment facing the unions have changed, throwing them into clutches of adversity and destitution. The purpose of this paper is to identify the reasons (i.e. antecedents) behind workers’ participation in union activities (such as strikes, rallies, demonstrations) in today’s scenario, and to understand how these participation tactics influence workers’ performance (i.e. worker behavior effectiveness) at work.

A range of published sources is drawn on, including quantitative, survey based and qualitative, case-study and other evidence for building the conceptual review.

The investigation clearly indicates that contemporary challenges facing unions in the present scenario prompt industrial actions. Only specific and genuine grievances and justifiable demands motivate workers to form a strong emotional attachment to their unions and engage in union participation activities such as strike activity (Darlington, 2006; Bean and Stoney, 1986).

Contrary to the traditional view, which sights unions as detrimental to worker productivity, turnover, and attendance at work (via restrictive work rules, featherbedding and disruptive strikes or other adversarial tactics), the investigation, through extensive review of literature proposes that unions positively influence worker behavior at work. The model, however, requires empirical testing to validate the proposed relationships.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors influencing office occupancy and the broader implications for workplace dynamics in Australia in the post-pandemic era.

The authors draw on industry insights, research data and expert opinions on remote work and office attendance to explain post-pandemic trends.

The paper finds that average office occupancy reached 71% of pre-pandemic levels in Q3 2023, indicating a significant rebound from earlier downturns. This can be explained by factors such as improved vaccination rates, clearer return-to-office policies by large corporations and a greater understanding of the virus.

This paper offers valuable insights on the implications of physical, hybrid and remote work highlighting the growing recognition of the importance of physical workspace in fostering collaboration, innovation and organisational culture. It also brings together evidence of the impact of flexible options that may support greater social and environmental sustainability.