Canoe

Saturday, March 17, 2001

Software pinpoints absentee workers By JASON BOTCHFORD-- Toronto Sun

A Canadian software firm claims it can save companies millions by shaving absenteeism by one day a year per worker.

Ottawa's Miridaro Software has designed a program to curb sick-leave abuse.

Statistics Canada estimates absenteeism costs the Canadian public and private sectors about $12 billion each year.

"We can reduce absenteeism by about 10% and that will more than pay for our service," Miridaro sales manager Gilles Cote said.

His company's Automatic Attendance Management System helps track who's where, why workers are away and how often they're gone.

'Long weekend'

The system alerts managers to problems and tracks "long weekend leavers" -- staff who consistently take off Monday or Friday.

The approach is now used by 40 different organizations, including the towns of Oakville and Pickering and the Toronto school board, which monitors its caretakers with the system.

A recent report shows 15% of caretakers at Toronto's public schools are absent on any day.

The software can "even save people who are going toward critical mental health problems like depression," said Cote.

It takes about two years to start seeing results, he said. Ottawa's public transit saved $600,000 last year.

-- Rachel Gibson (rgibson@hotmail.com), March 17, 2001