Workers are not entitled to paid sick leave simply because they can’t stand their employers, according to the head of a review of ill health at work.
Former John Lewis chairman Sir Charlie Mayfield said both employers and employees had a duty to tackle the growing of people taking time off owing to ill health.
Sir Charlie said a “supportive workplace” is important - but so is “personal responsibility.”
He said: “Life is full of setbacks - it is just life and happens to us all and we have a responsibility to work through them.
“‘I hate my boss’ is not a health condition. It maybe something you feel very strongly about - you could say it is an example of victimhood in the work context.
“It may be that your boss is hateful, in which case something should be done about that. But it may also be that there is a message being sent to you which says you need to think about what you are doing and take on board the uncomfortable truth that there is something you need to improve.”
Sir Charlie, who is to take charge of a taskforce aimed at helping people return to work, says the cost of sick leave could be reduced with appropriate intervention.
His report says there are 800,000 more people out of work now than in 2019 due to health conditions, costing employers £85 billion a year.
It is putting the UK at risk of an ‘economic inactivity crisis’ that threatens the country's prosperity, it argues.
The report, commissioned by the government, says one in five working age people are out of work, and not seeking work. Without intervention, another 600,000 people could leave work due to health reasons by the end of the decade, it states.
Publishing the document, the ex-retail boss said: “Britain is sliding into an avoidable crisis. Ill-health has become one of the biggest brakes on growth and opportunity. But this is not inevitable.
“Employers are uniquely placed to make a difference, preventing health issues where possible, supporting people when they arise, and helping them return to work. If we keep Britain working, everyone wins – people, employers, and the state.”
He has proposed a new approach where responsibility for health at work is shared between employers, employees and health services rather than being left to the worker and the NHS.
While Sir Charlie said employers must do more to help their employees, he warned that workers must play their part.
He wrote: “Work can be demanding. Setbacks are part of life. Health and work are not always easy partners, but they are mutually reinforcing.”
The so-called review was officially launched in January and was tasked with examining “spiralling levels of inactivity”, as ministers are looking at how to get people back into work.
Among its recommendations, the review called for the adoption of a workplace health provision, which it described as a non-clinical case management service supporting employees and line managers across a so-called healthy working lifecycle.
It said this approach, offering support and advice and early intervention, could be integrated with the NHS App and reduce or replace the need for the current fit note.
The government said more than 60 employers – including the British Beer and Pub Association, Burger King, John Lewis and Google UK – have expressed interest in becoming so-called vanguard employers to pioneer the overall new approach.
Work and pensions secretary Pat McFadden said Sir Charlie’s message is “crystal clear: keeping people healthy and in work is the right thing to do and is essential for economic growth”.
He added: “Business is our partner in building a productive workforce – because when businesses retain talent and reduce workplace ill health, everyone wins.
“That’s why we’re acting now to launch employer-led vanguards as part of the plan for change, driving economic growth and opportunity across the country.”
