Health secretary calls on employers to do more for work-life balance

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Health secretary calls on employers to do more for work-life balance

Health Secretary Alan Johnson today called for all employers to do more to promote the health and well-being of their staff.

Speaking at the British Heart Foundation's Well at Work Conference in London, Alan Johnson said:

"Ten years ago, we started the debate on work-life balance. Increased maternity leave, the introduction of paternity leave, time off for adoptive parents and the right to request flexible working have led to a quiet revolution, as more employers recognise that supporting a healthy work-life balance is essential to recruiting and retaining talented staff. The next stage is to incorporate work life balance with work health balance."

In his speech, the Health Secretary set out some key steps that employers and government must take:

First, employers taking steps to promote health and well-being in the workplace
Secondly, government must work with employers to improve how we identify potential health risks - in particular around stress and mental health - and address these risks
And thirdly, government must do more to help those who able to work, but have been prevented from doing so by health reasons to get back into the workplace

Sick Britain

The CBI estimates that 175 million working days are lost to ill health every year, with 36 million of these days lost because of occupational ill health costing UK businesses �13 billion a year
Back pain alone costs employers �600 million a year, with sufferers of persistent back problems on average taking 17 days off sick per year despite the fact that by taking small, cost-effective steps, absences can be dramatically reduced
Only half of those with back problems who are signed off for six months or more return to work. Only a quarter of those signed off for a year or more will return
Nine out of ten of those who come on to incapacity benefit want and expect to come back to work. Many start claiming incapacity benefit because of back and neck pain, depression or heart and circulatory problems - serious conditions but not ones that make long term unemployment inevitable
Those who are on incapacity benefit for one year are likely to stay there for eight. Once they've been there for two years or more, they are more likely to die or retire than ever work again
Some businesses are already offering excellent occupational health services and support to their employees. By introducing on site health clinics and health assessments, Parcelforce has reduced employee absence by a third and job satisfaction is up by a third too.
The average worker spends just under an hour travelling to and from work every day. The British Heart Foundation recommends we do half an hour of moderate exercise, five times a week. It is estimated that seven out of ten adults fail to meet this recommendation.
If every employee were to walk, cycle or jog at least part of their journey to work each day, we would increase the number of adults doing enough regular exercise from a desultory three out of ten to seven out of ten.