Are we sick of working, or working ourselves sick?

According to research done by the CIPD, we are taking 2 extra sick days every year, the highest levels of sickness related absence in over a decade, costing the UK economy £28bn a year.

Has Covid left us less resilient? Are we actually ‘less well’? Or, has Covid meant that we are all quicker to be kinder to ourselves when feeling under the weather?

As always, the way we approach this challenge will shape our responses. The instinctive approach is to ask: “How do we get more people in work?” but we may get better outcomes if we ask: “What can we do to support people to be at their best?”

According to the CIPD, the top reason for absence was minor illness (e.g., colds/flu, stomach upsets, headaches). It may be that the Covid years taught us to treat minor illnesses with more caution, both in terms of our own health and contagion. Whatever the cause, are people are less likely to push through and turn up anyway?

However, to add to the above, we need to look at how mental health interlinks with this area of presenteeism (begin at work when not being fit to) – 50% of staff are feeling stressed at work (YouGov, 2022). 60% of employees feel anxious, 56% of employees experience low moods, 19% of employees have a current mental health diagnosis, 66% of staff aged 25-35 experience symptoms of anxiety, over 80% of professionals experience fatigue at work – yet only 51% of staff “feel supported at work” (Champion Health, 2023). Whilst work has been done to support this area, we are certainly not there yet.

So, how can we create a working environment that supports wellness?

The two greatest causes of stress reported in the CIPD study were ‘workload’ and ‘management style.’ How do we begin to reduce the impact these have on presenteeism? As with everything it begins with building our understanding of what the people in our teams are experiencing.

If you’re interested in this, then join Lumien on Tuesday 5th December for a conversation about improving the employee experience in our businesses. The intent is to create a conversation and to explore the idea of bringing together a small group to meet throughout 2024 to continue to grow together and support each other.

If you have responsibility for employee experience in an SME and would be interested in taking part in the event, contact chris@lumien.io or head to https://lumien.io/