Employers are reacting to increased sickness levels with a range of well-being strategies.
According to the annual absence survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) the rate of absence has increased for the first time in two years, climbing to 8.4 days per employee a year, from eight days last year. The average cost of absence increased to £659 per employee per year from last year’s figure of £598. The cost of absence is highest in the public sector at £732 per employee per year compared to £680 last year.
There was also a significant increase in stress at work with a positive net balance of 31 per cent of employers reporting an increase in stress-related absence.
Employers, say the survey authors, are responding with a wealth of wellbeing strategies – 42 per cent have implemented one, a figure that compares to just a quarter in 2006.
In the public sector the trend is most apparent, with 60 per cent saying they have a well-being strategy in place (42 per cent in 2006).
Average spends are still a fraction of the overall business pay bill, totalling at 5.4 per cent, but just under half say they expect this figure to rise.
Despite the investment being made in this area, only 13 per cent of organisations evaluate the effectiveness of their well-being initiatives.
The survey also highlights that poor internal communication of the benefits being provided to staff means that often the investment made by employers in this area is not appreciated. Just 11 per cent of employers believe their employees fully appreciate the well-being benefit spend, with two-fifths (40 per cent) saying poor internal communication is the main reason for this.
Ben Willmott, CIPD Employee Relations Adviser commented: “It is becoming more and more evident that organisations are starting to manage employee health rather than sickness, not as a standalone well-being strategy, but as an integral part of an overall well-being programme. As organisations increasingly face the costs and risks of long-term absence, damaging their productivity, growth, retention and brand, businesses are increasingly under pressure to address the well-being agenda.
“However attempts to promote employee wellbeing and manage absence will be fatally undermined unless they are underpinned by good people management and effective work organisation,” he added. “There is no point providing healthy eating options and on-site gyms if people are dreading going to work because of their bullying line manager or because of their excessive workload.”
Almost half of organisations provide all employees with access to counselling services as part of their well-being initiative. This is followed by employee assistance programmes (31 per cent) and ‘stop smoking’ support (31 per cent). Around a quarter of employers also provide health screening, healthy canteen options and subsidised gym membership to all employees.
On average, employers believe that about 16 per cent of absence is not genuine.
