Revised February 2008
This factsheet gives introductory guidance. It:
- sets the context for occupational health services
- highlights the role of occupational health services
- outlines the elements for an action plan
- includes the CIPD viewpoint.
Healthy people, healthy business
Forward-thinking organisations recognise that managing their people is just as important to success as control of financial and capital resources. Some organisations are moving towards a promoting a concept of 'wellness' as a preventative measure to address employee health. Through an investment in people, organisations can achieve excellence and maintain a leading edge.
The 2007 CIPD Absence management survey showed that sickness absence accounts for 8.4% of working time - equivalent to 8 working days for each employee each year. The average cost of sickness absence is £659 per employee per year, with absence being one of HR professionals' top three concerns.
Organisations can improve the current and future health and success of their enterprise by developing a healthy culture and adopting a systematic approach to occupational health.
For information on issues related to occupational health, also see our factsheets on absence measurement and management, data protection, health and saftey, mental health and stress.
The role of an occupational health service
The CIPD absence management survey reveals that occupational health involvement is regarded by HR practitioners as the most effective method of managing long-term absence. However, only 70% of organisations use occupational health services to manage long-term absence and just 47% do so to help manage short-term absence.
Occupational health services should:
- monitor the health of employees
- help identify health problems and fitness for work issues at an early stage
- formulate rehabilitation programmes/return to work strategies
- work closely with line managers and HR professionals
- promote employee wellbeing and healthy living.
Level of provision
According to CIPD research, almost three-quarters of organisations provide their employees with access to occupational health services to deal with short and long-term absence. Occupational health services are most likely to be provided through a contract with an external provider, with 54% of organisations using this approach. Just over a quarter of organisations buy in the services of an occupational health provider as and when necessary, 18% have an in-house occupational health department and 17% have an in-house occupational health professional or other health professional such as a company nurse or doctor. (There are some organisations which use more than one approach, explaining why the above percentages add up to more than 100).
The level of provision should be determined by the size of the organisation and the nature of the operation. Guiding principles of occupational health policy:
- It should be available to, and benefit, everyone in the organisation.
- Management and employees must commit to the policy.
The policy is not a peripheral activity, it requires the support of top management. Managers with responsibility should report at a senior level.
Services to be provided
An occupational health service should:
- implement policy
- ensure compliance with health and safety regulations
- minimise and eliminate hazards
- deal with cases of drug and alcohol abuse, and advise on HIV/AIDS issues
- offer pre-employment health assessment
- maintain relations with appropriate bodies and individuals
- monitor the health of employees after an accident, illness and during and after pregnancy
- manage clinic facilities, basic health checks and first aid
- advise on medical severance and ill-health retirement
- advise on ergonomic issues and workplace design
- promote good health education programmes
- promote healthy eating
- monitor symptoms of work-related stress
- provide advice and counselling
- work with special needs groups.
The occupational health service will be provided by a diverse range of occupational health practitioners including physicians, hygienists, psychologists, ergonomic experts and occupational health nurses.
Action plan
- Gain senior management involvement and commitment.
- Develop a mission statement to communicate the initiative - why, what and how.
- Conduct an audit to establish the existing position, if possible in numerical and financial terms.
- Benchmark against organisations in the local area, similar sector and nationally.
- Plan the way forward - what improvements are needed, what needs to be developed, what the priorities, how will success be measured.
- Establish goals and targets relating to business needs.
- Develop a strategy to achieve the goals.
- Determine resources and assign responsibilities.
- Communicate to employees through group briefings, email, intranet, internal newsletters etc.
- Review and monitor progress regularly.
CIPD viewpoint
CIPD believes that personnel specialists play a critical role in convincing organisations of the competitive benefits to be gained from proactive strategies and that the effective management of the health and welfare of people at work:
- contributes to performance improvement and increases competitive advantage
- reduces unacceptable losses associated with ill-health and injuries
- lowers absenteeism, improves morale and reduces litigation costs.
CIPD recommends the implementation of practical occupational health policies, tailored to circumstances. Top management must demonstrate commitment and provide leadership in formulating strategy, developing policies and monitoring performance. It must ensure the necessary resources are available to implement policies. Health policies do not apply to large organisations alone; small and medium-sized enterprises need to tailor their response based on culture and resources.
Information about workers' health is classed as sensitive personal data under the Data Protection Act 1998. Therefore these details should be protected with appropriate measures and kept securely.
Useful contacts
Further reading
CIPD members can use our Advanced Search to find additional library resources on this topic and also use our online journals collection to view journal articles online. People Management articles are available to subscribers and CIPD members in the People Management online archive. CIPD books in print can be ordered from our Bookstore
Books and reports
ACAS. (2006) Health and employment. Advisory booklet. Rev ed. London: Acas. Available at: http://www.acas.org.uk
DONALDSON-FEILDER, E. (2007) Well-being and performance. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
INCOMES DATA SERVICES. (2006) Employee health and well-being. HR studies update. London: IDS.
KLOSS, D. M. (2005) Occupational health law. 4th ed. Oxford: Blackwell Science.
Journal articles
GATES, E.(2007) Well@work. Occupational Safety and Health Journal. Vol 37, No 4, April. pp.30-34
SILCOX, S. (2007) Making occupational health pay. IRS Employment Review. No 864, 2 February. pp26-30.
SILCOX, S. (2006) Obesity as a workplace issue. IRS Employment Review. No 860, 1 December. pp18-21. .
This factsheet was written and amended by CIPD staff.