Carol Black’s review: New back-to-work measures recommended

The National Director for Health and Work, Carol Black, has published her March 2008 report on the health of Britain’s working age population. The report, titled Working for a healthier tomorrow stresses the need for employers to take a greater responsibility with regards to their employee’s health, she highlighted long-term health conditions as an area of particular concern when considering people’s well-being and their ability to work. The report states that the largest proportion of unemployed people wanting to work is actually the long-term sick or disabled, which represents a challenge in helping them return to work.

Carol Black identifies early intervention as key to tackling the problem of long-term sickness. By acting early using the Fit to Work programmes, Black hopes to give important advice and guidance to the newly sick in an effort to prevent a short-term problem turning into a long-term one. By assessing the individual’s condition appropriate alternate work may also be found to allow them to continue working.

New emphasis is put on the employers by the report, with Carol Black criticising the fact ‘many employers to date have failed to provide access to adequate occupational health.’ To tackle this problem a consultancy service is suggested, available to give advice to businesses on their employee’s health and wellbeing. It is hoped that by doing so employers will take a greater interest in the overall health of their workforce.

Occupational Health and vocational rehabilitation services are proposed, offering advice to patients on their specific condition, but also on the work they are able to do while dealing with their condition. In some cases people find themselves unemployment because they are no longer able to perform the tasks their job requires, this initiative moves the focus away from returning them to a level of health where they can return to such a job. Instead, their ability to work is assessed and any employment is decided based on their ability to compete the necessary tasks.

The CBI estimates close to 175 million days are lost to sickness absence each year, with severe costs to the economy. The report recommends that greater support for employers and employees will help alleviate this problem.