UK Enlists 60 Big Companies in Drive to Improve Worker Health, Reverse Trend

The U.K. government joined forces with dozens of major employers to promote occupational health care in an effort to reverse a surge in adults out of work.

Aviva, Phoenix, EY and Google are among more than 60 large businesses taking part in a trial that aims to establish the best ways to cut sickness absence and improve return-to-work rates, the Department for Work and Pensions said Wednesday in a statement.

The move comes after a government-commissioned review into workplace health described Britain as being in an “economic inactivity crisis” with one in five working-age people out of the labor market on health grounds.

A surge in long-term sickness since the pandemic is taking a heavy toll, costing an estimated £130 billion ($175 billion) in lost output and adding billions to an already bloated welfare bill.

The three-year trial is geared toward developing a voluntary certified standard in healthy working by 2029, according to the DWP. The review estimated that a wider roll out could benefit firms to the tune of £3 billion to £8 billion a year. A separate technical document estimated that if rolled out nationally, the initiative would cost employers £4.1 billion.

British Chambers of Commerce Deputy Director of Public Policy Jane Gratton called the report “hugely important” but warned, “it is hard for many firms to see past a wall of rising costs” and “with the Budget just weeks away, a commitment to keeping a lid on business taxes is vital.”

The move also feeds in to government efforts to limit Britain’s welfare bill, which has surged in recent years. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves tried to move forward plans to slash £5 billion from disability payments, before Members of Parliament in her own Labour Party forced her to retreat. Nevertheless, she and Prime Minister Keir Starmer have both said it’s important to get more people off welfare.