PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 5th OCTOBER 2016

Absence rates remain stable, XpertHR finds.

Stability continues for absence rates as employers’ proactive approach to managing sickness absence pays off, finds the latest research from HR service XpertHR.The median rate of sickness absence across the whole economy was 2.6% of working time for the 2015 calendar year, the equivalent of 5.8 days per employee per year.

The 10th annual XpertHR benchmarking survey on absence rates and costscovers sickness absenceamong 1,681,721 employees within 661 organisations.

Absence rates for all employers, 2015 (no of days’ per employee, per year)

Lower quartile / Median / Upper quartile / Mean
No of days’ per employee / 3.6 days / 5.8 days / 8.5 days / 6.3 days
% of working time / 1.6% / 2.6% / 3.7% / 2.8%

Absence rates higher in public sector than private sector

Absence rates in the public sector continue to outstrip those in the private sector:

  • In the public sector, the median absence rate was 3.7% of working time for 2015, equivalent to 8.3 days per employee per year.
  • In contrast, median absence rates for the private sector were set below the national median. At the median, private-sector absence rates for 2015 stood at: 2.5% in the manufacturing-and-production sector, equivalent to 5.7 days per employee per year; and 2.2% in private-sector services organisations, equivalent to five days per employee per year.

This is likely to be due to several factors – among them, larger organisations tend to have higher rates of absence; many public sector roles tend to be public-facing and as such, carry a higher level of stress; and, a culture of acceptance. However, this sector has also seen a downward trend in absence rates since 2006 – from 4.4% (equivalent to 9.4 days’ per employee) to 3.7% of working time lost (8.3 days).

A decade of downturns in absence data

In 2006, when XpertHR first recorded absence rates, the median percentage of working time lost to absence was 3.5%. Over time, we have seen this figure fall. The median absence rate has not been above 2.8% since the 2010 calendar year.

“We first saw a marked downturn in absence rates around the time of the recession, where employee confidence was at an all-time low. However, we have seen this downturn consolidated since that time. Employers are proactively managing absence – not least because once absence rates dropped, the acceptance of higher levels also dropped.

“The changes also chime with the growing interest among HR practitioners in HR metrics and their role in improving overall business performance. We know that one of the first steps to effectively managing high levels of sickness absence is to measure it,” comments Noelle Murphy, author of the report and senior HR practice editor at XpertHR.

Absence rates for all employers, 2006-2015
Calendar year / Median, % of working time / Median, days per employee
2015 / 2.6% / 5.8
2014 / 2.5% / 5.7
2013 / 2.3% / 5.2
2012 / 2.6% / 5.9
2011 / 2.5% / 5.7
2010 / 2.8% / 6.4
2009 / 3.0% / 6.8
2008 / 3.1% / 7.1
2007 / 3.2% / 7.4
2006 / 3.5% / 8.0
Source: XpertHR.

Absence rates for all employers, % of working time per annum, 2006-15

Absence costs

Just over two-fifths (40.7%) of employers measure the costs of sickness absence, althoughmany have voiced their concern over the accuracy of the figure they use – believing it to be an underestimate. Among this group, the median cost of sickness absence was £455.95 per employee for the 2015 calendar year.

The cost of sickness absence per employee recorded for 2015 is significantly higher for public-sector organisations than it is for those in the private sector:

•In the public sector, the median cost of sickness absence per employee is £819.63.

•This compares with median costs of sickness absence per employee of £523.32 in the manufacturing-and-production sector and £416.74 in private-sector services.

This is likely to be due to the higher incidence and frequency of absence within the public sector, combined with the greater likelihood of contractual sick pay being higher than the statutory amount.

Note to editors

  • Press inquiries to Noelle Murphy, , tel 0208 652 2248 (or 079128 878612). Noelle is available for interview.
  • All XpertHR press releases can be viewed here.

XpertHR is the UK's most comprehensive online source of legal compliance, good practice and benchmarking information made available to HR professionals as a single subscription service.XpertHR is part of Reed Business Information.
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