More than a trillion dollars
Over a trillion dollars in lost productivity
That’s how much chronic illness costs businesses in the United States alone in lost productivity according to an independent think tank. In Canada that number is close to $100-billion. What’s worse, the numbers are expected to quadruple by 2030.
You would think with so much money at stake, more people would be talking about this issue.
Why is this such a problem?
Some of this productivity loss is due to presenteeism – where people show up for work but aren’t productive during their time on the job. Why is this happening? There are a few reasons:
1. Many chronic illnesses are invisible.
2. Many people do not tell their employers or managers because of the worry of being stigmatized or losing their jobs
3. Many of these same people do not monitor or attend to their illness (ie. take their proper medications etc) while at work because they don’t want people to know they are sick.
4. Many organizations are still slow to offer flexible work arrangements that will allow employees to be more productive during the time they are at work.
Click here for more information on how you can engage your chronically ill employees.
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