Sickness absence is a real problem in the public sector

Staff in the public sector have more sickness absence than other sectors according to Employee Benefits/HSA Healthcare Research 2008.

The survey, which is released today, finds that over half of respondents from the public sector claim that the average duration of employee sickness absence is between 6 to 15 days.

This is compared to the national average across all sectors, including the public sector, of 4% for this length of absence.

Glenn Rhodes from Healthplan provider HSA, which sponsored the research, comments: "The public sector comes out the worst at offering benefits to employees according to the survey, and sickness absence costs them the most with one in three claiming it costs them between 6 and 10% of payroll.

This sector should therefore consider bringing in benefits that help employees feel valued, help them alleviate their health problems while at the same time helping to reduce sickness absence in the organisation, such as a simple and affordable healthplan, offered by HSA." Amanda Wilkinson, Editor of Employee Benefits, says: "While almost half (48%) of employers in the private sector say that employees take less than five days off sick on average per year and 37% of employers say staff take between six and 10 days on average per year, only 8% and 67% of employers say the same respectively in the public sector.

This indicates that public sector employers tend to have a bigger problem with sickness absence than the private sector.

However, many public sector organisations have limited funds and resources to deal with the issue." The annual benchmark survey was carried out in April among 502 readers of Employee Benefits magazine in the UK.

For further information visit www.employeebenefits.co.uk.

HSA Healthplans enable employees to access affordable healthcare, whether for check-ups, treatment or emergencies.

For further information call 0800 072 6716 or visit www.hsa.co.uk.8.

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