Beware of Attendance Bonuses tied to Sickness Absence!

A tribunal case has found that a bonus scheme linked to attendance was discriminatory. In the case of Land Registry v Houghton, the employer operated a discretionary bonus scheme where any employee who received a formal warning for sickness absence would not be able to receive it. However, a number of employees were disabled, meaning… Read More

Gender & Sickness Absence: Who is worse, Men or Women? (2)

Research Paper Title The Gender Gap in Sickness Absence: Long-term Trends in Eight European Countries. Background Most studies show that women have considerably higher rates of sickness absence than men, but little is known on how the gender gap has developed over time. Methods Data are taken from the EU Labour Force Surveys. The dependent… Read More

Gender & Sickness Absence: Who is worse, Men or Women? (1)

A survey of sickness absence in Eight European countries from 1980 to 2010 (see next post) shows that, contrary to stereotype, for most of this period the Dutch have taken four times as much sick leave as the Italians and Irish. Women are off sick more than men in every country, but especially in the… Read More

Low Back Pain & Physical Activity

Introduction Low back pain (LBP) is an extremely common occurance amongst the UK population. Although most LBP episodes are simple and self-limiting, symptoms of LBP can be a major cause of physical and psychological disability, placing huge demands on society through the loss of working days and demands on medical resources. Facts & Figures Back… Read More

Depression- & Anxiety-related Sick Leave Leads Early Retirement

Research Paper Title Depression- and Anxiety-related Sick Leave and the Risk of Permanent Disability and Mortality in the Working Population in Germany: A Cohort Study. Background Anxiety and depression are the most common psychiatric disorders and are the cause of a large and increasing amount of sick-leave in most developed countries. They are also implicated… Read More

Office Workers, Sickness Absence & Prediction Models

Research Paper Title External Validation of Two Prediction Models Identifying Employees at Risk of High Sickness Absence: Cohort Study with 1-year Follow-up. Background Two models including age, self-rated health (SRH) and prior sickness absence (SA) were found to predict high SA in health care workers. The present study externally validated these prediction models in a population… Read More

Research: Physical Activity, Chronic Pain & Return to Work

Research Paper Title Efficacy of ‘Tailored Physical Activty’ of ‘Chronic Pain Self-Management Program’ on Return to Work for Sick-listed Citizens: Design of a Randomized Controlled Trial. Background Pain affects quality of life and can result in absence from work. Treatment and/or prevention strategies for musculoskeletal pain-related long-term sick leave are currently undertaken in several health sectors.… Read More