Keep Britain Working - Publication of Final Report

Sir Charlie Mayfield has this week published his report following the Keep Britain Working Review. The report outlines the scale of the challenges, and puts forward long-term proposals which work towards a 'healthy working lifecycle' - with redefined roles for employers, employees, health services, and government.

Below is an overview of the findings and proposals. The BRC engaged with Sir Charlie and relevant government departments throughout the process, including the hosting of a roundtable with HR leaders, and a meeting with retail CEOs.

You can view the full report here.

The problem

The report includes stark data highlighting the scale of the problem:

• Over 20% of working age people are out of work and not looking for work - a notably higher figure than many other European countries.
• According to the CIPD, sickness absence rates are 50% higher than before the pandemic, and at the highest level in 15 years.
• There are 800,000 more people out of work now for health-related reasons than there were in 2019
• The subsequent loss of economic activity is estimated to amount to £212 billion per year, the equivalent of 7% of the UK's GDP.

The role of employers

The report proposes a 'fundamental shift' from the current system which relies too heavily on the health service, to one with 'a shared responsibility between employers, employees and health services.'

In terms of the role employers will play - the report states that 'employers must lead.' Proposed employer responsibilities include:

• Emphasis is placed on the role of employers in prevention of health conditions (or their worsening) through making reasonable adjustments, working with their employees to rehabilitate and creating a plan to return to work.
• A large part of this is better directing training and support to line managers to ensure continuous conversation between employee and employer during a period of illness.
• Striving to create inclusive workspaces which encourage and facilitate greater representation of disabled people in workforces.

To help effectively deliver and target this support, the report proposes the creation of a Workplace Health Provision, described as a 'service that supports employees and line managers across the Healthy Working Lifecycle'

Finally, a lack of up to date and uniform data is identified as an important barrier. To tackle this, a Workplace Health Intelligence Unit is proposed, which would be a body responsible for data analysis and sharing, helping drive greater adoption of healthy workforce practices.

A phased approach

It is recommended that a phased approach is taken over the coming seven years, broken down into three stages:

1. Years 1-3: Vanguard Phase - employers can sign up to work with government and other stakeholders to identify some of the largest issues, improve data, and work towards best practices which can be adopted more broadly.
2. Years 2-5: Expansion - including release of certified standards, roll-out of fit note changes, and other products of the vanguard phase - with incentives to encourage broader uptake.
3. Years 4-7: General adoption - which would involve further integration across workforces and health providers, further targeting of incentives and 'normalisation of healthy and inclusive working standards.'

Next steps

It is expected that the government will respond to the report in due course. We have met with government officials earlier this week as part of this process, and will update members with any developments.

Media Response

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive at the British Retail Consortium, said: 

Retailers recognise the importance of supportive workplaces. Many invest in programmes supporting employees with ill-health or disabilities and agree with the review findings that structural issues hold back companies from doing more or activity being more effective. They are keen go further and a number of retailers are already signed up to engage with the next stages of the review.

Retail is built on flexible, local jobs. Half the three million people employed in retail work part-time. Such roles help people enter, stay in, or return to work after a period of absence as they can choose to work as much or as little as they are able. This uniquely positions the industry as a critical contributor to reducing economic inactivity from ill-health and disability.

But Government goals and policies are at odds with one another. While encouraging employers to invest in workforce health and provide flexibility, they risk making it more difficult. In its current form, the Employment Rights Bill would make it harder for retailers to continue offering as many crucial flexible roles.