Staff stress costs council 15,000 lost days - study

Absence rates at Warwickshire County Council are rising, according to its own data

More than 15,000 sick days were taken last year by Warwickshire County Council staff suffering stress and mental health problems, data shows.

The figures revealed in the authority's own investigation show a total of 15,001 days lost - around 35% of all staff absences.

A report into the research, for the financial year 2023-24, shows this is up 7% on the previous year, and it has hit 40% in departments facing rising demand, like children's services, social care and health.

However, resources and action are being targeted to support staff in those services that have a "significant impact" on the overall absence figure, the council said.

Fourteen years of austerity have "piled on the pressure" and the local authority workforce is "exhausted," said Ashley Morley, of Unison in the West Midlands.

The council's report indicates that overall, absence rates are rising, but apparently in line with national trends.

The average number of sick days for a full-time equivalent council employee is at 9.86 per year, above a target of eight, which has a tolerance of one either way.

That figure was 9.16 in September 2023 and 8.99 a year ago, the report stated.

'Immense pressures'

In 2023 Rob Powell, strategic director for resources, said the balance between staff wellbeing and the need to save money was "one of the top issues" facing the council.

He specifically referenced "immense pressures" on "frontline services and the support services" amid demand levels that had become "extremely high."

Although the matter was not discussed in detail at the most recent cabinet meeting, council leader Izzi Seccombe noted it and acknowledged "we need to keep an eye on that".

In relation to the number of people taking time off due to stress and mental health issues, the report said investigations into the contributing factors was ongoing.

"Wellbeing is actively being monitored using the check-in surveys,” it added, before referring to an increased rate of long-term absence in the overall statistics.

Cited 1,106 times, chest or respiratory illness was the most frequently occurring reason for absence and highlighted "as a significant cause of days lost".

"As the cuts bite deeper and jobs are lost, the staff remaining in post are stretched ever more thinly, as they try to cover the work of colleagues who've left," Mr Morley, Unison's regional organiser, continued.

"Council workers want to deliver good services to local communities, but working in such stressful circumstances is clearly taking its toll."

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.