Employee absenteeism is a major challenge for Australian employers, impacting workplace productivity and employee well-being. To maintain business continuity and support their workforce, employers need to analyse absenteeism patterns and implement effective strategies.
However, businesses often struggle to understand how patterns of absenteeism in their workplace relate to broader social patterns. To help fill this information gap, Ai Group Research & Economics have developed a new benchmarking resource on rates of absenteeism rates across the year.
Seasonal Variations in Absenteeism
The labour market absenteeism rate—the average proportion of employees who work fewer hours than usual due to various reasons, including illness, personal matters (such as study and carer’s leave), adverse weather conditions, and other factors—fluctuates significantly with the seasons.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) gathers data on employed persons who worked fewer hours than usual by hours worked in all jobs in their labour force detailed release. The chart derived from this data reflects the average proportion of total employed workforce absent at any time during the month. It is calculated based on recorded working hours, meaning any reduction in hours worked contributes to people being counted as absent.
Data from 2015 to 2024 (excluding the pandemic years of 2020–2022) indicate a clear seasonal pattern. During winter, absenteeism rates exceed 8%, while in summer, the rate drops to around 7% or lower. This trend is primarily attributed to an increase in seasonal illnesses, such as colds and flu, which are more prevalent during colder months. As a result, personal illness, injury, and sick leave remain the most common reasons for absenteeism throughout the year. Conversely, bad weather conditions and plant breakdown contribute the least to absenteeism.
Therefore, understanding absenteeism trends enables businesses to plan more effectively and develop workforce management strategies that account for seasonal fluctuations.
See all of the workforce benchmarking tools from Ai Group Research & Economics in our Labour market dynamics in Australia factsheet.
Dr Jeenat Binta Jabbar is an Economist at the Australian Industry Group, specialising in labour, migration, wellbeing, poverty, and inequality. With her experiences in NGOs, non-profits, humanitarian, and academia, Jeenat worked for incorporating and improving evidence-based policies and programs. Jeenat also has a good background of business informatics, combining economics in her Master program at Ural Federal University, Russia. She completed her PhD in Economics from RMIT university.
