A fifth of SME business leaders, equivalent to over a million small business bosses, are worried that their employees’ productivity has fallen over the past 18 months, research from Canada Life has found.
The findings have raised concerns about productivity and presenteeism. According to the study, employers’ primary concerns regarding allowing employees to work from home were distractions at home (19 per cent), internet connectivity (19 per cent), a drop in productivity (19 per cent), technology challenges such as IT issues (18 per cent), and a drop in motivation (18 per cent). (18 per cent)
A fifth (17 per cent) of SME leaders were concerned about their employees’ mental health at the start of the first lockdown, and a similar amount (14 per cent) said this concern manifested itself throughout the pandemic. The pandemic also saw an increase in presenteeism issues. Nearly a fifth (19 per cent) of SME leaders believed that presenteeism among their employees increased as more people worked while sick rather than taking time off.
Working from home was a requirement for a significant number of businesses in the UK, so more than half (55 per cent) of SME employers had to implement new measures, with the most significant changes being to IT equipment (24 per cent) and implementing flexi-working (24 per cent).
The most common measure implemented is the active encouragement of employees not to work if they are feeling ill. Recognising the impact of presenteeism and mental health concerns in the workplace, two-fifths (40 per cent) of senior decision-makers at SMEs have felt the need to be more present for their colleagues over the last 18 months. But the percentage of SME leaders who assist co-workers suffering from presenteeism has dropped to 37 per cent, down from 41 per cent in 2020. This figure rises to 62 per cent for senior decision-makers in SMEs with more than 10 employees.
Canada Life protection sales director Dan Crook says: “While employers clearly had concerns about the productivity of their staff over the course of the pandemic, it’s encouraging to see that they are more concerned about the wellbeing of their workforce and have introduced measures to support them during these uncertain times.
“However, it’s clear that there is still more work to be done, as both employers and employees feel the effect of presenteeism in the workplace. This is an example of where having the right support services as part of a group protection policy can play a vital role in supporting employees, and employers who adopt them can demonstrate their commitment to their employees by putting their wellbeing first.”
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