How to calculate Absenteeism Rate

Formula

Absenteeism rate = days absent ÷ scheduled working days × 100

SQL query

This example assumes: attendance(employee_id, day, scheduled, absent_unplanned). It is written in PostgreSQL syntax; date functions differ slightly in MySQL, BigQuery and SQLite, and your column names will differ from these.

SELECT DATE_TRUNC('month', day) AS month,
       COUNT(*) FILTER (WHERE absent_unplanned) * 100.0
         / NULLIF(COUNT(*) FILTER (WHERE scheduled), 0) AS absenteeism_pct
FROM attendance
GROUP BY 1
ORDER BY 1;

Common mistakes that make Absenteeism Rate wrong

• Planned leave (holiday, parental leave) should not count unless you define it so.
• Part-time schedules must be in scheduled days, not calendar days.
• Handle this data carefully: it is personal data, so aggregate and restrict access.

Ask for Absenteeism Rate in plain English

Instead of writing the query yourself, you can type the question. SchemaChat turns it into SQL against your connected database or uploaded file, runs it, and shows the SQL and the figures it used so you can check the answer before you share it. It does not replace your judgement about the definition: check that the query matches the formula your business uses.

• What is absenteeism by month and department?
• Which weekdays have the highest unplanned absence?