The relation between presenteeism and different types of future sickness absence

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Epidemiology
• Workplace Psychology

Background:

• Sickness presenteeism, defined as attending work despite illness, is a growing concern in occupational health.
• Understanding its relationship with future sickness absence is crucial for workforce management and employee well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between sickness presenteeism and different types of future sickness absence.
• To analyze these relationships in a cohort of Belgian middle-aged workers.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 2,983 Belgian workers (1,372 male, 1,611 female) was studied over 12 months.
• Presenteeism was measured by self-reported frequency of working while ill.
• Multivariate logistic regression analyzed the link between presenteeism levels and short/long sickness absence spells and high sickness absence frequency.

Main Results:

• High presenteeism (>5 times) was significantly associated with both long (≥15 days) and short (1-3 days) sickness absence spells in both men and women.
• Moderate presenteeism (2-5 times) was linked to long absence spells in men only.
• High presenteeism correlated with high sickness absence frequency in women.

Conclusions:

• Sickness presenteeism is a significant predictor of various future sickness absence patterns.
• The findings underscore the importance of addressing presenteeism to mitigate future absenteeism in the workplace.