Less than a fifth of UK manufacturers are measuring the cost of sickness and absence according to EEF, the Manufacturers Association, who has just published its annual report into sickness and absence. 

EEF’s ‘Sickness and Absence Survey 2015’ revealed that the average sick pay cost per employee is £374 equating to a total cost of £1 billion for the manufacturing sector every year. However, it seems that few companies are measuring the costs of absence within their own firms. Whilst companies spend an average of £91 on health and well-being benefits, only 3 percent are measuring their return on investment and just 5 percent are measuring the impact these benefits have in terms of reducing sickness and absence rates.

Almost a third (30 percent) of survey respondents admitted that they do not have support systems in place to help employees with mental-health-related long-term sickness absence.

Adrian Lewis, Commercial Director at Activ Absence, a leading provider of absence management software commented, “EEF’s research shines a light on the true financial impact of sickness and absence on UK manufacturers.  In total, workforce sickness and absence costs the UK £29 billion a year. That’s nearly a quarter of what it costs us to run the whole NHS.

 “The report also reveals that the majority of companies fail to track and manage absence rates and very few have insight into whether their health and employee benefits are having a positive impact on their staff’s well-being. Companies with the right systems in place to manage absence will not only see an improvement in their absence rates and a cost reduction of around 20-30 percent, they will understand why absences are taking place. They will be able to identify the root causes of absence, see patterns and trends in different areas of the business – intelligence that will enable them to put measures in place to support staff or address any issues head on.”