Absences/PTO/Attendance Control/Consistent Discipline

LEGAL (a/k/a SUMMER) DEVELOPMENT: The final 2026 FIFA World Cup tournament is July 19th in East Rutherford. Bruno Mars is playing MetLife on August 21st. The Shore and summer barbeques are Jersey staples, which go strong every weekend. And we are eagerly awaiting pics from Taylor Swift’s wedding. The point is, whatever varied interests your employees have, summer is when absences spike. Those absences are fine when employees have a PTO bank to use. What happens when that PTO bank runs dry, and our employee has called out to enjoy a little extra Monday/Friday summer fun? Employers can and should take some preventative measures to guard against the summer attendance slump.

HR TIP: It’s tough to play the bad guy (I do love a good Bruno Mars concert), but employers need to ensure adequate summer attendance. As we head into those hot summer days, send all staff (so as not to single anyone out) individual monthly reminders, letting them know how much of their PTO remains. Include a friendly reminder on the attendance/vacation and call-out policies, as well as disciplinary consequences. Meet with frequent violators before a discipline event occurs. Most importantly, treat all attendance offenders the same. If your role model employee, who never violates the rules, chooses this summer to break them, treat this employee the same as any other violator. It will help with morale for those that follow the rules. This consistent treatment may also serve as a defense to a possible legal claim. On top of the routine attendance concerns, don’t forget that more employees become eligible for New Jersey Family Leave on July 17th and staffing will become more challenging.