The lionesses will be back on our screens for The Women’s World Cup 2023, co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. They’ll be facing Haiti in their first World Cup group game on July 22 in Brisbane.
The full tournament will run from July 20th to August 20th right in the middle of summer so be prepared...your employees might decide to pass on coming to work and take some annual leave days.
If they do—don’t panic and call off the match! Here are 3 tips to support you and your team during big events like the World Cup.
1) Stay ahead of the game
Making sure you have an effective absence management before any big summer event is key to avoiding unnecessary disruption to your business performance. Wiegman wouldn’t get caught without an effective game strategy and neither should you!
BrightHR’s annual staff trends infographic (2022), shows there was a 61% increase in annual leave requests the day that the England Women’s team won the Euros. And if that’s not enough reason to get your annual leave system ready, 56% of staff booked the following Monday off after the match.
Workforce planning is key if you want to make sure your team takes home the win and stays as productive as possible.
2) Give lateness the boot
We’ve checked the scoreboards and an enormous 23 million people tuned into the World Cup 2022 and staff lateness was up by a whopping 71% compared to the average Sunday.
We’re predicting that the reason was probably to do with the nation’s collective sore head after a loss. But big sporting and global events can have a huge impact on your team’s tardiness and last-minute absences. Don’t sub your staff! Ask Bright Lightning: How can I minimise the number of unplanned absences when the World Cup is on?
3) Don’t sit on the sidelines, set clear guidelines for a fair game
Having compliant and up-to-date employee contracts is a must if you want to set clear boundaries with your staff. It can be useful to remind employees in advance of sporting events what your rules are.
For example, when it comes to the footy, staff might want to follow the game on their phones or personal devices. Whether you allow this will come down to your policy on using the internet at work or your mobile phone policy.
It’s your choice whether you allow staff to follow the game but it’s important to lay ground rules down, especially if you work in a customer-facing industry or an industry where absolute concentration is necessary for safety.
As long as guidelines have been set, there should be no need for a sending-off. But you might have to issue the odd yellow card!
If staff breach the rules, having a quiet word could be your first approach. For repeated or more serious breaches you should get the right advice to address staff proportionately to the circumstances and follow a formal disciplinary procedure if necessary.
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