The Effects of Presenteeism on Employee Productivity and Mental Health in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Presenteeism is a phenomenon about which a gap has been identified regarding its effects on productivity or worker well-being in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. This research analyzes the effects of presenteeism on workers' productivity and mental health, and the moderating-mediating role of mental health in the relationship between presenteeism and productivity. Based on the literature, a model was developed to verify the proposed relationships. To test it, data was collected through an online questionnaire applied to 308 participants who had experienced any health problem during the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposed model was analyzed using structural equation modeling with partial least squares (PLS) estimation. The evidence indicates the positive effects of presenteeism on workers' productivity and mental health. It also shows the nodal role of employees' mental health in their work performance when they decide to work whilst sick. As a mediating role, the impacts of presenteeism on productivity are high, both with a focus on completing work and avoiding distraction. In the moderating role, the relationship between presenteeism focused on work completion and productivity is weakened.

Keywords

• presenteeism behavior
• positive phenomenon
• worker's health
• mental health