Absenteeism in the workplace cost the US economy an estimated $74 billion last year. Yes, billion.

In an affront to what Michelle Conlin of Business Week calls the "sick ruse," high profile players like Walmart and Dell are investing in "absence management' strategy. Calling in sick is no longer sacrosanct.

Wait a minute: isn't everyone, employers and employees alike, trying to spur engagement in the workplace? Isn't the goal to create a culture where employees want to come to work? 

At ClearGears, we believe there's more value in tracking employee happiness than employee absenteeism; more to be gained from incentivizing engagment than from aiming for mere attendance.