Staff rehabilitation and managing sickness absence conference provides key to 'huge rewards' in manufacturing

HSE press release E004:06 - 10 January 2006

The Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) manufacturing sector has announced a 'best practice' conference on rehabilitation and managing sickness absence among employees in manufacturing industries.

The conference takes place on 9 March 2006 in Stoke-On-Trent and is aimed at key intermediaries involved in manufacturing industries, such as trade associations, employer associations, trade unions and training organisations.

It brings together a series of speakers who will share their success stories on how they implemented effective programmes to manage sickness absence and rehabilitation, together with the business and human benefits that flow from them. Delegates will be able to take away examples to adapt and apply to help their own stakeholders realise similar successful strategies.

Announcing the conference, Terry Aston from HSE's manufacturing sector said:

"Long-term sickness absence costs UK businesses over £3.8 billion each year. Organisations that have implemented effective management programmes have reaped huge rewards in terms of having a healthy workforce, reducing costs, improving competitiveness, improving workplace relationships and holding on to valued staff.

"One of our speakers will, for example, show how his company reduced musculoskeletal disorders by 90% and through that, saved not only considerable human suffering, but also £0.5 million in the first year of their programme alone. Other businesses can learn from this experience."

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive has developed a good practice approach to help employers work in partnership with employees and their representatives to manage long term sickness absence and help those off work sick, whatever the cause, to return to work. It sets out the steps on helping people return to work, provides advice on barriers to return and lists sources of help and advice. Further information on managing sickness absence can be obtained from the HSE web site at www.hse.gov.uk/sicknessabsence/index.htm

2. On 19 October 2005 the Department for Work and Pensions, HSE and the Department of Health launched the first stage of a strategy aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of working age people. The strategy, Health, Work and Wellbeing - Caring for our Future, pulls together all the different strands of government work in this area. It will help break the link between ill-heath and inactivity, encourage good management of occupational health including prevention, transform opportunities for people to recover from illness while at work and enable people to maintain independence and sence of worth. It also puts the emphasis on creating healthy working environments. The strategy document could be found at www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/dwp/2005/health_and_wellbeing.pdf

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