Long-term sickness absence is still an ongoing issue, according to a major sickness absence study of the manufacturing industry, released today by EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, and Unum, one of the
UK
’s leading group risk insurance providers.
The EEF/Unum 2009 Sickness Absence Survey shows that, despite overall sickness absence decreasing, 36% of employers report an increase in long-term absence from 2007 to 2008.
Long-term sickness absence, where an employee has been off work for more than a month, has a substantial effect on UK industry as well as for the social welfare of the population. The cost of this is exponentially higher than short-term absence, due to the expense of replacement staff, agency fees and many other indirect costs associated with absence – all a major headache for employers.
The survey results identify ‘surgery or medical investigation or tests’ as the cause of almost 60% of all long-term absences, ahead of back problems (34%), cancer (26%) and stress (25%). And this category continues to worsen, with the number of employers citing the cause increasing by 6% over the last 12 months and 14% since 2005. In addition, of those employers who have seen an increase, 28% report that ‘waiting for appointment or diagnosis of illness’ is a barrier on the pathway to return to work and 25% cite ‘waiting for treatments or operations’.
Commenting, Professor Sayeed Khan, EEF Chief Medical Adviser said:
“The overall fall in sickness absence figures conceals a worrying trend – an ongoing issue with long-term absence. Employers can do a lot to address this through better management, but employers would benefit from faster access to NHS treatments and secondary care in order to have a chance of significantly improving absence levels.
“Furthermore, similar training to that being provided to GPs in health and work also needs to be given for health professionals who work in hospitals.”
The research shows that 45% of companies say that they are dissatisfied with the current sick note system, with only 28% satisfied.
Many employers are under the impression that a current sick note means that an employee cannot return to work. But in reality, if an employee wishes to return to work, provided an adequate risk assessment has been performed, the note should not be a barrier: it is legal to work even if you are signed off sick.
Commenting, Professor Michael O’Donnell, Chief Medical Officer at Unum said:
“Dame Carol Black’s ‘fit note’ will be a major step forward in addressing attitudes towards sickness and the sooner we can introduce it, the better. Changing the mindset and therefore attitudes is the critical first step in bringing about a real and effective change in approach by all parties.
“The proposed ‘fit for work’ initiative should help the NHS follow the recently launched NICE (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) guidance on long-term sickness absence and incapacity. There is still a need for early intervention in the working population to prevent job loss and long-term absence from work”
The EEF/Unum survey revealed other findings, including:
Back pain remains the second most quoted cause of both short-term and long-term absence
The cost of barriers to rehabilitation in the manufacturing industry has fallen by more than £100m a year to £508m (down from £610m in 2008)
3 million fewer days are being lost in Manufacturing due to sickness absence now than in 2005
Overall sickness absence in the industry now stands at 6.2 days per employee each year, down from 6.8 days per employee in 2007.
ENDS