A significant proportion of the UK's small business bosses are risking their health as they battle absence to keep businesses afloat, according to Bupa.
Four in ten heads of small companies continue to work from their sick beds, as their business would collapse if they were to take time off.
In addition employees may be compounding the problem. Nearly two thirds (62%) of SME bosses say employee absence is negatively affecting their business, and according to 46%, high levels of employee absence are estimated to contribute up to a 10% drop in turnover in small businesses.
Yet despite these pressures, 38% of bosses admit they spend more on office stationery than initiatives that support employee health and wellbeing, such as flu jabs, cycle to work schemes and subsidised gym membership.
Tony Wood, sales and marketing director at Bupa said: "Small business bosses are real troupers; they are totally committed to running their firms in sickness as well as health. However they need to think about how to take care of their health needs and those of their staff, as working through sickness isn't a long-term solution for anyone."
