IPPR calls for ‘health-led economy’ as worker sickness causes huge rise in costs to businesses

The report, which was published on 31 July as the final paper from the cross-party IPPR Commission on Health and Prosperity, found that the cost of worker illness to businesses in the UK increased by £30 billion between 2018 and 2023 – £25 billion of which was the result of lower productivity by people who came to work while sick. The remaining £5 billion was the result of an increase in the number of sick days taken by employees.

Employees lose the equivalent of 44 days of productivity through working while sick. Photograph: iStock/Laylabird

According to the report, UK workers now lose 6.7 days through taking sick leave, compared with 3.7 days in 2018. In addition, employees lose the equivalent of 44 days of productivity through presenteeism – up from 35 days in 2018. While UK workers are “among the least likely” to take sick days, compared with other OECD and European countries, they are “more likely to persevere at work through sickness”, the report found.

“Too often, UK workers are being pressured to work through sickness when that’s not appropriate – harming their wellbeing and reducing productivity,” said Dr Jamie O’Halloran, a senior research fellow at IPPR and one of the report’s authors. “This can be because of a bad workplace culture, poor management, financial insecurity or just weak understanding of long-term conditions among UK employers.”

Paul Devoy, chief executive of Investors in People, added: “All the evidence shows there is a clear link between employers having a positive culture of wellbeing in their organisation with productivity and sustainable organisational performance. Focusing on systematically leading, supporting and improving a culture of wellbeing has long-term benefits for all employers who make that commitment to their staff.”

The report describes the UK’s absenteeism and presenteeism problem as “a crisis”, noting that, “left unmitigated, growing sickness will increase both the length of time and proportion people can expect to live their lives in poor health”.

The think tank is calling for a “reimagining” of the role that businesses play in the health of the UK population. It wants to see the introduction of a tax incentive for companies that commit to “significant improvements in the health of their workforce”, as well as new compulsory reporting on worker health, aimed at helping investors “differentiate between health-orientated and health-harming businesses”.

The IPPR believes there is a “unique opportunity” for the UK to transition to what it calls a “health-led economy”, whereby employers would be expected to “do more to ensure good workplace health across the economy”.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the number of working-age people in the UK who are neither employed nor looking for a job has been rising in recent months, with a record 2.8 million people economically inactive due to ill health.

The new UK Government recently unveiled plans to tackle economic inactivity by working with local mayors to design work, health and skills plans that are specifically targeted at helping local people enter or re-enter the workplace.

In its Health, Safety and Wellbeing Manifesto, published earlier this year, British Safety Council called for wellbeing to be placed at the heart of economic growth. Its calls included the development of a National Wellbeing Strategy, as well as the introduction of a tax offset for businesses that invest in new technologies that drive up health, safety and wellbeing standards in the workplace.