Occupational Stress, Physician-Excused Absences, and Absences Not Excused by a Physician

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Abstract
Purpose.: This study explores two possible mechanisms through which occupational stress is linked to absenteeism. The extent to which physician-excused absenteeism and absenteeism not excused by a physician are related to employee reports of perceived stress is assessed. Design.: A plantwide survey was conducted in January 1990. Employee reports of occupational stress gained from this survey were linked with 1990 absenteeism data from the employees' records. Setting.: A mid-sized manufacturing plant. Sample.: Complete data were available for 998 of the 1534 (65%) unionized employees in the plant. Measures.: Measures of both physician-excused absences and absences not excused by a physician were created. Stressors included role ambiguity, lack of control over work pace, and being paid on a piece-rate basis. Perceived stresses included role conflict, physical environment stresses, and overall work stress. Results.: For physician-excused absenteeism, role conflict (OR, 1.54, p <.01), overall work stress (OR 1.24, p <.05), and physical environment stress (OR 1.34, p <.05) had significantly elevated odds ratios, even after adjusting for demographics. For absences not excused by a physician, none of the stressors or stresses had significant odds ratios after controlling for demographic characteristics. Conclusions.: Employees in this plant were not using short-term voluntary absenteeism as a way of coping with work stress. However, high levels of perceived work stress were associated with subsequent physician-excused absences.