ABSENCE and EMPLOYEE FEELINGS ABOUT FAIR TREATMENT¹

Abstract

Summary T his study calls into question again a frequently made assumption that variations in employee absence rates may be accounted for solely by examining the direct rewards and punishments provided by the work situation. Absences among nonsupervisory men at an oil refinery were found to be related to feelings of fair treatment with regard to promotion, irrespective of how good employees see their actual chances for promotion to be. Attitudes concerning the fairness of pay also were found to affect absences. The results were interpreted as indicating the importance of feelings of loyalty and obligation among employees in accounting for behavior such as absences.