With the Department of Work and Pensions to publish its Sickness Absence Review on Monday, the UK Rehabilitation Council (UKRC) is urging government to lead in proactive return-to-work strategies.
It has written to government pressing the case for a rehabilitation strategy with a view to better co-ordination of resources, improved education for employers and public and more incentives for best practice.
Sickness absence is estimated to cost the UK £26bn per year, with mental health problems the number one cause. Long-term sick leave cost the UK economy £3.7 billion in 2009, according to the CBI.
, the UKRC has identified factors that hold the UK back in workplace rehabilitation.
• Short-sighted management, who see rehabilitation as an expense and distraction from other priorities;
• Disjointed and often inadequate public provision of rehabilitation services;
• Lack of understanding of the subject and of how to go about procuring rehabilitation services;
• Perverse financial incentives that discourage the use of rehabilitation;
• A lack of infrastructure to help SMEs have access to rehabilitation.
Catherine McLoughlin, chairman of UKRC, said: "It doesn't matter what other good things the government does, the sickness absence review will only work if it addresses the question of how to make our rehabilitation outcomes as good as those of other modern economies."
"This means engaging the workplace and public in promoting the most effective rehabilitation and not just assuming the state will take care of it. Money invested in rehabilitation very quickly more than pays for itself through increased productivity and reduced reliance on benefits."
The Council has also developed a straightforward guide for best practice in sickness absence management, called ‘the 10 Hallmarks of a Good Employer', also available on its website. www.rehabcouncil.org.uk.
