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31/01/2003
Minister voices concern over civil service sickness
NIO Minister Ian Pearson has expressed his "concern" over sickness levels in Northern Ireland's civil service.
The Minister’s comments came as a reaction to a report published by the Civil Service which analysed sickness absence within departments across Northern Ireland during 2001/2002.
The report reveals that during the financial year there was a sickness absence rate per staff year of 15.1 days. More than 35% of staff had no sick leave during this period. The vast majority of working days lost (76.9%) say the department, were due to a relatively small proportion of staff (14.6%) with nearly a quarter of working days lost being due to psychiatric or psychological illnesses.
“It is recognised that the last two to three years have been a period of major change and upheaval for staff in Northern Ireland departments. Nonetheless the current levels of sickness absence are a cause of major concern and a range of departmental and corporate initiatives have been devised and are being implemented to address it," he said.
"Government sees sickness absence in the workplace as a priority issue for a number of reasons. Poor attendance can lead to reduced productivity and efficiency, which in turn will reflect upon the service provided to the public. There is also the knock-on effect of extra tasks having to be placed on the remaining staff, which creates obvious additional pressures for them.”
He said the report would be of "major benefit" in attempting to identify sickness patterns and their causes and in helping to devise strategies to address the problem.
The report is a statistical tracking of absences to help departments identify patterns or trends and development procedures.
(GMcG)
The Minister’s comments came as a reaction to a report published by the Civil Service which analysed sickness absence within departments across Northern Ireland during 2001/2002.
The report reveals that during the financial year there was a sickness absence rate per staff year of 15.1 days. More than 35% of staff had no sick leave during this period. The vast majority of working days lost (76.9%) say the department, were due to a relatively small proportion of staff (14.6%) with nearly a quarter of working days lost being due to psychiatric or psychological illnesses.
“It is recognised that the last two to three years have been a period of major change and upheaval for staff in Northern Ireland departments. Nonetheless the current levels of sickness absence are a cause of major concern and a range of departmental and corporate initiatives have been devised and are being implemented to address it," he said.
"Government sees sickness absence in the workplace as a priority issue for a number of reasons. Poor attendance can lead to reduced productivity and efficiency, which in turn will reflect upon the service provided to the public. There is also the knock-on effect of extra tasks having to be placed on the remaining staff, which creates obvious additional pressures for them.”
He said the report would be of "major benefit" in attempting to identify sickness patterns and their causes and in helping to devise strategies to address the problem.
The report is a statistical tracking of absences to help departments identify patterns or trends and development procedures.
(GMcG)
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Northern Ireland WeatherToday:Mostly dry south and east, patchy light rain west and north through much of the day. A band of heavier rain crosses central and northern parts in the morning Maximum temperature 13 °C.Tonight:Dry in the southeast at first otherwise widespread light rain or drizzle for most, turning to clear spells and a few showers towards morning. Minimum temperature 5 °C.
