South Africa's absence from work goes beyond just healthcare accessibility concerns.
In South Africa, workplace absenteeism rates are among the highest globally, averaging between 3.5% and 6%. This issue is no longer just about physical illness; people are taking sick leave due to stress, burnout, and emotional fatigue.
Marco Neto, a partner at Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr, emphasizes that health is not just clinical, but also personal, emotional, and often invisible. Job insecurity, rising living costs, and the psychological hangover of COVID-19 have added layers of stress that often don't present in medical check-ups but do show up in absenteeism records.
Employees who appear "fine" on the outside may be navigating serious health issues underneath the surface, especially those who never fully recovered after the pandemic. Absenteeism is suggested to be a warning signal, indicating a deeper story behind each day off.
Recent global research has linked long COVID to persistent inflammation. This inflammation is associated with depression, brain fog, and immune system disruption. Tania Joffe, founder of Unu Health, emphasizes the importance of a holistic approach to health in addressing workplace absenteeism.
To combat this issue, employers can implement strategic wellness initiatives. On-site wellness screenings that detect early health risks, including mental health issues, enable targeted interventions and disease management support, reducing costly absenteeism and presenteeism.
Providing managers with tools and training to support employees’ mental health and personal challenges improves employee wellbeing, job satisfaction, and retention. Managing workloads to prevent excessive stress and burnout is also crucial.
HR-led initiatives to create a mental health-friendly workplace foster understanding, reduce stigma, and encourage employees to seek help early, which can significantly decrease absenteeism connected to mental health challenges.
The financial cost of mental health-related absenteeism in South Africa is substantial, with combined costs estimated at R250 billion annually. Just absenteeism costs businesses over R19 billion yearly, highlighting the strong business case for investing in mental health support.
By integrating these strategies—wellness screening, supportive management, workload balance, and stigma reduction—employers can effectively mitigate mental health-related absenteeism while enhancing overall productivity and employee engagement in South African workplaces. It is important to pay attention to the underlying issues contributing to absenteeism and to foster supportive workplace cultures that encourage openness and understanding.
Employees' health issues can extend beyond clinical aspects, encompassing personal and emotional well-being, as well as mental health, factors that can contribute to increased absenteeism rates. To address this, employers can implement holistic wellness initiatives, including mental health screenings, supportive management, workload balance, and stigma reduction, aiming to foster a mental health-friendly workplace culture, reduce absenteeism, and improve overall productivity.
