Chief Minister Allan Bell MHK has welcomed a further significant reduction in the level of staff sickness absence across the Isle of Man Government.
The latest figures show a 12% drop in the number of days lost per employee – 4.43 for April to December 2013, compared with 5.03 days for the corresponding period in 2012. That represents an overall cost saving of almost £1 million.
The statistics also reveal that 66% of Government employees had no absence during the nine-month period in question.
One of Mr Bell’s first actions following his election as Chief Minister in 2011 was to ask the Office of Human Resources to produce a strategy to address staff sickness absence and provide regular updates for the Council of Ministers.
He said:
‘As I witnessed during my recent visits to all Government Departments, the vast majority of our staff are extremely conscientious and most cases of absence are genuine. The latest figures are another step in the right direction, but there is still room for improvement. At a time of intense financial pressure, it is essential that we get our own house in order and ensure that Government is running as efficiently as possible. This includes further reducing the cost of working days lost through staff sickness absence.’
The Office of Human Resources has put in place a comprehensive framework of support to address the most common reasons for staff absences, including ‘musculoskeletal problems’, ‘operations, hospitalisation’ and ‘stress, anxiety, depression’, which together account for 53.6% of days lost.
Specialist training and rehabilitation guidance is being supplemented by a self-care in the workplace course aimed at helping staff with high levels of sickness absence to improve issues around health and behaviour.
There has been a dramatic reduction in absence levels in the group of staff who have attended the course. The total number of hours lost has fallen by 61%, representing an estimated saving per person of £5,000.
As part of the ongoing programme of staff engagement and support, a cross-Government survey is currently taking place to gather views, attitudes and concerns among the workforce.
The Chief Minister said:
‘The Isle of Man Government is going through a period of unprecedented change, so it is important to listen to our employees. Their responses will result in action that will shape our efforts to create a more sustainable future for the Isle of Man.’
