Four times as likely to leave if a sick worker does not have job flexibility

According to a new study, people who have no flexibility in their job are four times as likely to quit their job if their health declines.

The Work Foundation at Lancaster University, following last month’s announcement of the government’s plans for Get Britain working has released a report that tracks the employment journeys and outcomes of over 9,000 UK workers from 2017 to 2022. This report focuses on those who fell ill during the first two study years.

Researchers found that by the end four years of the study, 9% of workers who experienced a decline of health had quit the workforce. Nearly half of these employees left their jobs within the first 12 months.

According to the Work Foundation, data show that accessing flexibility in the workplace is crucial for people with health conditions who want to stay at work. Employees with no flexibility in their jobs were four times as likely to quit their jobs after experiencing a decline in health, while employees who had little control over their tasks were 3.7 more likely to do so.

The Covid-19 pandemic, which ravaged the UK’s labour market during the study period, was a major disruption. The Work Foundation, however, found that despite these extraordinary circumstances, employment rates following a health decline remained at the same levels as in previous years.

It says that this suggests that the lack of workforce retention after the onset of illness is a persistent problem on the labour market and not caused by challenges of the pandemic.

The report, Stiming the tide: Healthy jobs to combat economic inactivity ,, highlights what researchers refer to as an ‘awareness-to-action gap’ among UK employer’s when it comes addressing illhealth at work.

A survey of over 1,000 senior business leaders found that 64% of them said poor employee performance had a negative impact on the economic performance of their organization. However, only 48% offered flexible work arrangements to their staff.

Ben Harrison, Director of the Work Foundation said: “The UK Government’s Get Britain Working Agenda focuses on helping those who have left the labour market return. But if we don’t consider the factors driving people to leave, we run the risk of treating symptoms instead of the cause.

It is evident that it becomes more difficult to get someone back to work once they leave their job due to illness. In order to achieve the government’s goal of increasing the employment rate by 80%, it is important to take steps to stop the flow from those who leave work because they are sick and to find new ways for them to remain in the workforce.

Only a third (36%) of the businesses surveyed reported that they had taken other steps to prevent illness, including assessing the mental health risks at work and making adjustments to workload, pace, and roles clarity.

Employer Support

The co-author, Lancaster University Professor Stavroula Léka, stated: “Unlike other nations like Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands the UK government fails to provide adequate support for employers by coordinating preventative occupational healthcare services.

“The business leaders we interviewed acknowledged the importance of occupational healthcare, but only 37% provided these services to their staff.

The UK’s current system needs to be improved. The focus is not on early intervention and prevention to help sick workers stay in work.”

Researchers found that those with multiple health problems were more likely to quit their jobs. The research found that those with just one disability or health condition are 1.5 times more likely than others to quit their jobs following a negative transition in health.

With two or more disabilities or illnesses, the likelihood of being absent from work is increased by 2.4 times. This increases to 5.6 for those who have three or more.

Recommendations

Liz Kendall, the secretary for work and pensions, announced last week a new independent review called “Keep Britain Working”. The review will examine employers’ and governments’ roles in combating health-related inactivity as well as creating healthy workplaces. The review will be headed by Sir Charlie Mayfield (former chair of John Lewis) and report in autumn 2025.

Harrison said: “We found that workers with multiple conditions, including mental health problems, are particularly vulnerable to early termination from their jobs. Evidence also shows that employers can play a major role in retaining workers with ill health by taking early action to help them. Keep Britain Working must identify new ways that employers and the government can work together in order to offer this early intervention.

The Work Foundation has made several recommendations to the government, including:

• Assert that the Employment Rights Bill ensures secure and flexible work from day one.
• Enhance enforcement of mental risk assessments and prevention measures
• Lead a transformational strategy of OH services focusing on improved and expanded coverage for all employees, with large employers providing mandatory coverage
• Create a UK wide network of workforce health hubs that offer funded SME services, and are integrated with public health initiatives
• Increase and strengthen statutory sick leave to encourage retention and allow for phased return to work
• Examine the practicalities for extending the employer’s duty of care, subsidizing the cost of long term sickness absence and encouraging vocational rehabilitation.

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