1. What is the Bradford Score?

The Bradford Score is a metric used in human resources to quantify the impact of employee absenteeism. It emphasizes frequent short-term absences over longer-term absences by squaring the number of incidents.

2. How Does the Calculator Work?

The calculator uses the Bradford equation:

Where:

• \( \text{Incidents} \) — Number of separate absence periods (unitless)
• \( \text{Total Days Absent} \) — Cumulative days absent across all incidents (days)

Explanation: The score increases exponentially with more frequent absences, highlighting patterns of short, frequent absences that are more disruptive to businesses.

3. Importance of Bradford Score

Details: Organizations use Bradford Scores to identify problematic absence patterns, with higher scores triggering HR interventions. Typical thresholds are 100 (caution), 200 (warning), and 400 (disciplinary action).

4. Using the Calculator

Tips: Enter the total number of separate absence incidents and the cumulative days absent. Both values must be non-negative integers.

5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Why square the number of incidents?
A: Squaring emphasizes frequent short absences which are more disruptive to operations than fewer longer absences.

Q2: What's a "good" Bradford Score?
A: Lower is better. Scores under 100 are generally acceptable, while scores above 400 may trigger formal processes.

Q3: How should organizations use this score?
A: As one metric among several to identify potential absenteeism issues, not as sole criteria for disciplinary action.

Q4: Does it account for legitimate long-term illness?
A: No, the score disadvantages those with genuine long-term conditions. Most organizations make exceptions for documented medical absences.

Q5: Can the score decrease?
A: Typically no - it's a cumulative measure. Some organizations use rolling 12-month periods to allow scores to decrease over time.