November 14, 2011
Workers who continually take time off work, or are signed off sick, greatly increase their chance of being made redundant, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has warned.
According to the Institute’s annual absence survey, more than two-fifths of the public sector organisations polled said that they intend to make redundancies over the next six months. While a further 33% suggested that redundancies were a possibility, compared with one in six in the private sector and a quarter of non-profit organisations.
However, half of the employers polled said that they used employee absence records as the crucial criteria when selecting redundancy candidates. Alarmingly, this figure rose to nearly three-quarters in the manufacturing and production sector.
A link between job security and mental health problems was also revealed by the survey, with those employers planning to make redundancies over the next six months significantly more likely to display mental health problems among their staff.
However, separate research by occupational psychologists OPP has concluded that almost 30% of workers believe that they are stressed by their job, with more than one-fifth considering quitting as a result. And the onset of mental health issues, such as stress and depression caused by job insecurity are becoming inevitable for many of today’s highly-pressurised workforce.
If you’re struggling with job-related issues, and wish to discuss how redundancy could affect your life, please visit our expert solicitors today.
