Derby City Council: Staff absent for average of 13 days

A working group is being set up by the authority to look at ways of improving absence rates

Staff at Derby City Council were absent from work for an average of 13 days over the past year, a report shows.

The council investigated the issue after a meeting at which a senior officer said its rates were higher than most comparative authorities.

It found each employee averaged just over 13 days absent in 2022/23.

Council bosses said Covid was a contributing factor, along with stress and anxiety, as well as musculoskeletal issues.

The report found the figures for the last full year were slightly higher than the previous year. where council staff averaged 12.84 days absent.

'Astronomical figure'

Speaking at an executive scrutiny meeting on 13 June, new Oakwood councillor Jamie Mulhall said: "The days lost to sickness is quite shocking to me.

"That's an astronomical figure really."

Responding to Mr Mulhall's comments, the former Conservative council leader Chris Poulter urged the new Labour administration to look into the absence rates.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said the method for staff reporting sickness absence had recently changed.

They were now required to ring their manager rather than an externally-hosted absence reporting line.

A working group is also being set up to look at ways of improving absence rates.

A spokesperson for Derby City Council said: "The working group will review the absence data in more detail and recommend a series of actions to support the council's continued management of colleagues' health and wellbeing."