BA boss attacks staff absenteeism

British Airways boss Rod Eddington has reportedly launched an attack on staff absenteeism, which is costing the carrier more than GBP50 million a year. According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, the carrier’s chief executive wrote a letter to employees in the in-house newspaper, saying that absenteeism was running at an average of more than three weeks a year and that it was “an area of real concern”. The average absenteeism, the newspaper reports, is 6.5 days per annum in the private sector and 8.5 days in the public sector. Eddington reportedly wrote: “With a current UK workforce of 37,500, that adds up to 626,250 lost days every year. These are dreadful statistics.” The Telegraph recalls that last year the carrier blamed “social sickness” among cabin crew for the cancellation of certain flights. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad