Sickness north south divide
By TJ (24-07-2007)
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A new report from the CIPD, based on the results of its annual Absence Management survey, shows that sickness absence rates are at their highest in the north east of England, where the average is 11.3 days per employee, compared to just 7.8 days in London and the south east.
The biggest annual regional reduction in the level of employee absence was in Wales where the rate dropped to 8.7 days compared to 9.7 days for the previous year.
The average level of employee absence in the UK has increased for the first time in two years – now 3.7% of working time lost compared to 3.5% in 2006 and now costs businesses on average, a staggering £659 per employee per year.
A regional breakdown shows the average number of days lost per employee in 2007 as follows:
North East England – 11.3
West Midlands – 9.5
North Ireland – 9.0
Wales – 8.7
Scotland – 8.1
East Midlands – 8.2
South West England – 8.1
London – 7.8
South East England – 7.8
Other findings:
Stress continues to be a major cause of sickness absence. Forty per cent of organisations report that stress related absence increased in the previous 12 months. Just 9% of respondents identified a decrease in stress-related absence. Workload (34%) has been identified as the number one cause of work-related stress followed by management style (16%) and organisational change (14.3%). Long hours are cited as the seventh most significant cause of work-related stress.
Looking at other causes of absence, minor illness is the number one cause of short-term absence for both manual and non-manual employees. Back pain is the leading cause of long-term absence for manual workers, while stress is the main cause of long-term absence for non manual employees.
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