More than half (58%) of line managers in the UK do not fully understand what Sir Charlie Mayfield’s Keep Britain Working report means for employers, according to Working to Wellbeing.
A key recommendation of an update to Mayfield’s final report, published at the end of March, is for managers to prioritise supporting members of staff return to work following illness or injury.
Yet Working to Wellbeing’s research has discovered that many line managers feel unsupported and ill-equipped to prevent absences and to help members of their recovery to keep them at work.
Indeed, only 56% of the 1,000-line managers questioned by Working to Wellbeing, agreed with the statement: ‘My employer encourages me to understand what wellbeing support and interventions individual colleagues need to thrive at work’.
A quarter remained neutral, while 19% disagreed.
Similarly, 54% of line managers agreed with: ‘My organisation has implemented a strong return to work plan’. On this statement, 17% disagreed.
Not enough time
Another finding of the research is that the experience of the 1,000 employees surveyed, their views mirror those of line managers.
Just under half (48%) agreed with the statement, while 22% disagreed: ‘I think my line manager has been equipped with sufficient resources to support wellbeing as part of their job’.
Meanwhile, 45% supported the statement: ‘My line manager has a good amount of time to support employee wellbeing’. Almost a quarter (23%) did not agree.
Business case
Working to Wellbeing managing director Dr Julie Denning (pictured) said the business case for tackling all this is airtight and urgent.
“Although best practice guidelines from the vanguard phase of the Keep Britain Working review are yet to be published, the goal was made clear when the final report was published in March, namely: workplace absence and economic inactivity are getting out of control, so let’s work together – employers, employees and providers of health services – to prioritise prevention and return to work support, in a way that’s personalised, outcomes-driven and sustainable. vocational rehabilitation is key to all this.”
