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Contact: Jan Schapira
Tel: +44 20 7178 3127

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UK
London, 9 November 2009

• One in three sick days falls on a Monday
• More days are lost in January than any other month
• Musculo-skeletal conditions are top cause of all absence
• Sick leave amongst women 24 percent higher than amongst men

More than a third of all sick leave is taken on a Monday, confirming Mondays as the day of most sickness absence from the workplace, according to research by Mercer. The highest rate of absence, by far, occurs in January, and musculo-skeletal problems are the most common cause, followed by viral infections and stress-related illnesses.

Mercer’s research is based on an analysis of sickness management records for 11,000 individual employees across a range of private sector organisations.

January is, by far, the month with the highest level of sickness absence, with sick leave averaging half a day per person for the month. During the whole of 2008, 13 of the 20 most popular days for sickness absence occurred in January; six of these were taken between 2 and 9 January. On 3 and 4 January, nearly 5 percent of the total employee population was absent on sick leave.

Thirty-five percent of all sick leave is taken on a Monday, with attendance on the remaining working days becoming higher as the week progresses. Fridays are least likely to be taken as sick leave, and account for only 3 percent of sickness absence during the working week.

Phiroze Bilimoria, a client manager at Mercer, said: “Monday sickness and frequent short-term absences can be a symptom of low employee engagement and morale within certain teams or departments. Once identified, companies can take measures to try and address this.”

The most common recorded cause of absence is musculo-skeletal problems, in the form of strain or injury to bones, muscles and joints – accounting for nearly a quarter of all days lost (24 percent). Other common causes are stress-related illness, and cold, flu and other viral infections - both accounting for 17 percent of days’ absence. Although viral infections are the most common reason for absence measured by incidence (35 percent), the period of absence in each case is generally small. By comparison, stress generally leads to long-term absence but with a low incidence rate (4 percent).

The survey also found that 12 percent of working days lost are due to food poisoning and other gastric problems (27 percent of incidences), while cancer accounts for just 2 percent of absence.

Twenty-four percent more days are taken by female workers than their male counterparts. Absence rates amongst women are more than twice as high as for men in instances of stress-related illness, exhaustion and depression. By contrast, muscle sprains, fractures and other physical injuries sustained by men account for at least double the absence rates amongst women.

Mr Bilimoria commented: “Companies with high absence rates carry an extra burden of costs that often drains organisational effectiveness and profitability. Direct costs can be measured through overtime payments and temporary contracts but hidden costs, reflected in reduced productivity, missed deadlines and litigation are generally much higher.

“Organisations that record and manage employee absence can reduce the toll on direct business costs and overall performance. Better coordination between line managers, occupational health teams and external healthcare providers can be particularly effective for managing long-term stress and musculo-skeletal conditions,” he said.

Recent developments in systems and processing mean that absenteeism can now be accurately monitored and employers provided with detailed information on the causes and duration of absence together with the cost to the company. “Having this information enables organisations to intervene before illnesses turn into disabilities and avoid the higher risks of long-term lost productivity, claims and litigation that can these present,” said Mr Bilimoria.

Notes for editors

An absence management system developed and used by Mercer, HealthConnect, monitors and measures absenteeism by cause and duration, and employers can use real-time data to intervene to assist employees in recovering and managing extended absence periods.

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Contact: Jan Schapira
Mercer Press Office
Tel: +44 20 7178 3127