Conservative Controlled County Council Cuts Staff Absence by 8%
Conservative controlled Staffordshire County Council’s new approach to managing staff absence has resulted in 9,000 fewer sick days, equivalent to 36 full time employees or £540,000 worth of gained productivity.
The 8% reduction means that the county council’s absence rate – now at 7.68 days per employee – is the same as the private sector and below that for similar sized organisations in the public sector. The latest figure of 7.68 per employee is lowest it has been.
A county council spokesperson said: “A fit and healthy workforce is vital for a well run organisation. While some staff sickness is unavoidable, our new approach has had a big effect. It’s about taking action to support staff to prevent sickness, or when they are absent, helping them get back to work as soon as possible.
“It is not about being harsh or unreasonable, but by focussing on early intervention, we can ensure we are getting people the right treatment that allows them to come back to work. The counselling service has reduced psychological-related absence by 14% through concentrating efforts on early support. Our Pilot Physiotherapy service has helped us achieve a 12% reduction in musculoskeletal absence and shown a 300% return on our investment.
“The result of this new approach to attendance management is over 9,000 more days worked by our staff, to provide the services that people in Staffordshire rely on.”
A new absence management process was launched in February last year with communication and training for almost 1,000 managers, promoting greater personal responsibility for reducing absence. Every tier of management now receives monthly absence reports for their teams, highlighting any areas where extra support or action is needed.
A pilot physiotherapy service was established for staff with musculoskeletal conditions such as pain and stiffness in joints, muscles, nerves and soft tissues. It offers rapid treatment to help staff return to work quickly. The new physiotherapy service is provided by local Staffordshire firm CTC Physiotherapy. It compliments existing occupational health and staff counselling services already provided to enable employees to remain in work or return to work quickly.
