Sickness absence rates: 2023-2024

The rate of sickness absence continued to fall in 2024, with employees losing on average 4.4 days of work per year.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the percentage of working hours lost to illness or injury fell by 0.3 percentage points over the year to 2.0% in 2024 – marginally above the pre-pandemic level of 2019, when it was 1.9%.

• Causes: minor illnesses (30%) were the most common reason given for sickness absence in 2024, followed by musculoskeletal problems (15.5%), ‘other’ conditions (15.1%), mental health conditions (9.8%), and respiratory conditions (7.3%).
• Rates: the sickness absence rate in 2024 for men was 1.6% and for women 2.5%. Sickness absence rates are higher among older workers than younger workers. The sickness absence rates for most age groups fell in 2024 compared with 2023. The only age group to not see a fall was for those aged 16-24, whose rate was unchanged on the year. Women’s sickness absence was higher than men's sickness absence in all age groups in 2024. The sickness absence rate fell on the year for both men and women in almost all age groups in 2024. The largest decrease for men was in the 25-34 age group and the largest decrease for women was in the 50-64 age group. Women aged 16-24 was the only age group to see an increase over the year, rising to a rate of 1.6%.
• Public sector: the sickness absence rate for public sector employees in 2024 was 2.9% and for those working in the private sector it was 1.8%.
• Part-time employees: the sickness absence rate for part-time workers in 2024 was 2.6% and for full-time workers was 1.9%.