From The Ergoweb® Learning Center

UK Companies Using Ergonomics To Dump Sick Days

It’s estimated that approximately 50 percent of all one-day workplace sickdays in the United Kingdom are used for anything but sickness, and according to a report on BBCNews, companies in the U.K. are looking for ways to change that.

Forty million workdays are lost each year due to workplace absenteeism in the U.K., and while 93 percent of employees cite the traditional colds or flu as the reason for missing a day of work, British healthcare consulting firm IHC indicates that for most single missed days, that’s far from the truth.

Real reasons, says IHC, include work issues, personal issues and domestic issues. While companies can’t cure personal and domestic problems, they can and are attempting to tackle work issues that may be keeping workers from coming to work.

Lack of motivation on the job, low pay, workplace stress, back pain from poor seating, and even uncooperative bosses are all doling out their share of problems for U.K. workers. IHC estimates that for stress, anxiety and depression alone, 13.4 million workdays are lost annually, while another 12.3 are lost due to back and upper limb problems.

To combat the high cost of workplace absenteeism, IHC is advocating prevention