Since the general election, the Labour Government has been making significant changes to employment rights through their plan to "Make Work Pay". To complement the Employment Rights Bill, the Government has recently published its Get Britain Working White Paper which proposes various initiatives to combat economic inactivity and create high-quality jobs throughout the UK. This blog focuses on the launch of an independent review into the role of UK employers in promoting healthy and inclusive workplaces.

Current statistics on sickness and disability

Combatting economic inactivity caused by ill-health is one of the Government's top priorities. Over a quarter of all people aged 16-64 currently have a long-term health condition that is limiting their day-to-day activities. The number of individuals with a disability is rising, with 2.6 million (38%) more people in the working-age population classed as disabled compared to 10 years ago.

Sickness within the workplace has also risen, with 4.1 million workers having a health condition that is work-limiting. The biggest increase has come from those aged 16–24, with 22.6% classed as economically inactive due to ill-health. The most common conditions affecting those within the workplace include mental health, musculoskeletal conditions and cardiovascular disease, with obesity being a key risk factor.

The White Paper notes that:

  • Those who are out of the workforce due to long-term sickness are likely to face multiple barriers upon their return to the labour market including a lack of qualifications and recent work-experience.
  • Sickness at work imposes a large cost on employers impacting, for example, performance, absence and recruitment costs, and the retention of experienced workers. In 2022/2023, an estimated 31.5 million working days were lost in Great Britain due to work-related illness.
  • The current support available for those experiencing long-term sickness is criticised for being too centralised and fragmented. In order to tackle the current challenges facing those who are not working due to ill-health, employers need to play an active role in providing support.

Scope and aims of the independent review

A new independent review into the role of employers in creating and maintaining healthy and inclusive workplace will run until summer 2025 and is set to engage widely with employers, employees, trade unions, health professionals and people with long-term health conditions.

The Government recognises that employers play an essential role, via their recruitment practices, in promoting inclusive workplaces which work to protect and support those facing health conditions. The review will make evidence-based and practical recommendations which will support employers to:

  1. Improve recruitment and retention of disabled people and people with health conditions including via the new jobs and careers service (the Government is also aiming to transform Jobcentre Plus across the UK);
  2. Prevent people becoming unwell at work and better support good, healthy workplaces;
  3. Undertake early intervention for sickness absence and increase returns to work.


Other Government initiatives

The review will operate in tandem with other Government reforms included in the Employment Rights Bill.

The Government is set to introduce various reforms to Statutory Sick Pay ('SSP'). Currently, SSP is payable from day four of sickness. To qualify, an employee must have average weekly earnings of at least the lower earnings limit (currently £123 per week) based on the eight weeks before they fell ill. The Employment Rights Bill will remove the three-day waiting period and the lower earnings limit. For those earning below the lower earnings limit, there will be a lower rate of statutory sick pay - a consultation on the rate closed on 4 December 2024.

The Government is also seeking to strengthen the current flexible working regime. Whilst employees currently have the right to request flexible working from day one, employers can refuse their request based on one or more of the eight business reasons listed in legislation. Under the Employment Rights Bill, employers will only be able to refuse a flexible working request if it is reasonable for them to do so and will need to state the ground for refusal and explain why it is reasonable to refuse the application. Read more in our earlier blog.

Workbox by Brodies

Workbox by Brodies subscribers can access practical and up-to-date content to support them in managing sickness, absence and disability in the workplace, including dedicated guidance on absence management, reasonable adjustments and sick pay.