Reported on Mon, 15 May 2006

Firms are still losing out through high rates of time off for illness, claims a new report, but companies who have found their profits hit in the last year could consider a business loan to boost second-quarter prospects.

A study by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that the number of sick days fell by a collective total of four million last year, but argued that excess time off – sometimes for spurious reasons – is still affecting British economic performance.

The organisation suggests that the cost of lost days over 2005 ran up to £13 billion, with employers suspecting that 13 per cent of cases were not genuine.

John Cridland, deputy director general of the CBI, said: "The huge cost of absence to the economy shows why so many chief executives declare that their people are their most important asset."

He added: "Nobody wants staff to drag themselves into work when they are genuinely ill, but there is clearly concern that a culture of absenteeism still exists in some workplaces and this must change."

Firms that have been affected could take out a low-rate business loan to galvanise performance over the next phase of the financial year.

© Adfero Ltd

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