Three-quarters have worked while unwell in the past year, with many staff feeling pressured to press on without taking sickness absence.
A survey of more than 1,400 workers in Britain by health screening firm Bluecrest Wellness found that 77% had participated in presenteeism – working while unwell – in the past 12 months, with one in five felt under pressure from their employer to continue working.
Women were more likely than men to continue working while sick, as were younger employees.
Presenteeism
Nearly half (48%) of those who worked while unwell felt like they could not let their team down, and 38% said they could not afford time off, suggesting they did not receive any occupational sick pay.
Presenteeism had negative effects on their work. Forty-two per cent said it took them longer to get better, 39% felt less engaged, 27% were not themselves when dealing with colleagues, and 15% admitted to making mistakes.
Many struggled to access primary healthcare, with 52% stating they had hesitated to book a GP appointment in the past year. Forty-two per cent of this group said it was too hard to get an appointment, while 18% felt they were not sick enough to justify an appointment and 18% “didn’t want to bother the NHS”.
Sixty-five per cent were worried they would not get support to prevent chronic disease, or catch it early enough, and 82% were very or quite worried about NHS capacity to support them and their family.
More than half (56%) of people admitted to having felt generally unwell or run down in the past three months, rising to 62% of women.
Asked about the health benefits they would like to see from their employer, 73% said they would potentially be interested in a confidential health assessment. Cashback on optician or dental appointments, physiotherapy sessions, mental health support and telephone GP access were also rated highly.
Dr Martin Thornton, chief medical officer at Bluecrest Wellness said: “Presenteeism is alive and well in British businesses, and it needs to be addressed. People should not be working when they’re not well – and people should absolutely be accessing health support when they need it.
“What’s worrying for us is that opportunities to prevent and detect the early stages of chronic diseases in the community are beginning to be routinely missed. We know that many of these can start with very vague symptoms. Your first sign of heart problems could be just shortness of breath. Your first sign of cancer could be just losing weight. And your first sign of diabetes could just be fatigue.
“It can be really difficult to put those vague symptoms together, which is why it’s so worrying that so many people are avoiding the GP – or waiting to see if things get worse. Businesses absolutely have a role to play here, not just in facilitating time off, but in actively supporting health and wellbeing – and investing in preventative health strategies.”
Chief executive at Bluecrest Wellness Dominque Kent said: “If organisations really want to improve things like sickness absence rates and productivity, the answer is not to expect or encourage people to work when they’re unwell, but to help them live well – and stay well for the long term.
“There’s been an explosion in health benefits in recent years, but preventative health has often been a missing link. Yet supporting people to understand their health and health risks, make lifestyle changes and spot potentially serious issues early makes clear business sense.”
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