Seasonal flu – employers should encourage at-risk staff to be vaccinated
Last week the BBC reported on figures from the Health Protection Agency (HPA) that showed that last winter’s flu outbreak claimed 602 lives in the UK, with more than 70% of these deaths among 15- to...
View ArticleRein in costs by managing sickness absence
It’s been reported that Portsmouth Hospitals trust has saved £9m from its overall pay bill for 2010-11, partly due to a ‘renewed emphasis’ being placed on the management of sickness absence and other...
View ArticleIncentivising attendance – thinking beyond cash incentives
It is estimated that the UK economy loses 150 million working days to sickness absence each year. This led the Government to call for a major review of sickness absence in February 2011. The...
View ArticleAnyone for tennis? Wimbledon and unscheduled absence
The fact that the first day of the 2011 Wimbledon Championships saw rain and the exit of a British player will not do much to detract from the levels of interest in the championship over the coming...
View ArticleLooking ahead to the new sickness absence review – keeping people in work
On 17 February 2011 the Government called for a major review of the sickness absence system in Great Britain in order to help combat the staggering £100 billion that working age ill health costs the...
View ArticlePresenteeism and its impact on organisational performance
Most organisations are aware that they need to manage absenteeism and record absence trends. However, presenteeism (employees coming to work when they actually feel they are too ill to work) and the...
View ArticleLong-term sickness absence – work stress named as most common cause
This year’s Absence Management survey, released today by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and corporate healthcare provider Simply Health (and available to download from the...
View ArticleSurvey – small businesses, sickness absence and the recovery of SSP
New research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has shown that sickness and absence cost small businesses on average £1,500 in the last 12 months (although it cost 9% of firms £5,000, or...
View ArticleBBC Radio 4 gives air time to cutting sickness absence
In anticipation of Dame Carol Black’s forthcoming review of the sickness absence system in Great Britain, the topic of sickness absence was the focus of yesterday’s edition of You and Yours* on BBC...
View ArticleReview of sickness absence (Dame Carol Black and David Frost CBE)
The independent review of sickness absence (the Review – available on our knowledge base) by Dame Carol Black and David Frost CBE, which was published on 21 November 2011, aims to minimise the loss of...
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More should be done to help people return to work after long term illness,...
Photo by limaoscarjuliet David Cameron has spoken out strongly about his intention to end Britain’s ‘sick note culture’ after being shocked by the figures contained in the latest review of sickness...
View ArticleOfficial launch of ‘new’ Adviceline to help organisations manage sickness...
This week (11 January 2012) saw the official launch of the new Health for Work Adviceline (the Adviceline). This enhanced service continues to offer free telephone advice to businesses with particular...
View ArticleCancer and work
This week (23-29 January 2012) is Cancer Talk Week, which aims to help raise awareness of cancer and encourage people to talk openly about it. Receiving a cancer diagnosis is a life-changing event. In...
View ArticleSigning up to the health and wellbeing of employees
The Workplace Wellbeing Charter (the Charter) was launched in May 2010 and is a set of entirely voluntary workplace standards to promote good, safe and healthy work. The Charter provides a simple,...
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New BSI standards for managing stress in the workplace
Image by markhillary via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence Following demands for formal regulation, three new standards have been/are being developed under the guidance of the British Standards...
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Early detection is an important factor in the effective treatment of cancer
Image by teach mama via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence A survey of 2,000 people conducted for Cancer Research UK has produced some worrying results. It appears that many people (around 40% of...
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How discouraging smoking is in the interests of employers
Photo by khawkins04 via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence This year’s national No Smoking Day is taking place on 14 March 2012. Most of us don’t need to be reminded of the significant health risks...
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Focus on stress – Part 1: Why do people become stressed?
Photo by University of Salford via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence Due to the number of enquiries we receive about stress on the Health for Work Adviceline website (by far the most popular topic...
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Focus on stress – Part 3: Supporting employees who are suffering from stress
Photo by www.traveleden.com/brighton via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence Problems with stress are on the increase so employers will need to become proficient at recognising the signs of...
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Evaluation of pilot stage of occupational health (OH) Adviceline services –...
In 2008, Dame Carol Black’s review of the health of Britain’s working age population* estimated the economic costs of sickness absence and worklessness associated with working age ill-health to be over...
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