Four out of ten employees have taken less holiday since the pandemic, according to new research. A new study from Acas and YouGov found that 39% of UK workers took less paid time off work during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the year before, with employees from small and medium-sized businesses the least likely to take paid […]

The nation’s mental health is now a major cause for concern for employers, says Adrian Lewis, Director of Activ Absence. This Stress Awareness month Adrian is pressing for employers to do more to recognise and address signs of stress and burnout before they escalate into something more serious. This follows a new study from the […]

Over the next few months, employers can expect to be inundated with annual leave requests warns Adrian Lewis, Director of Activ Absence. And he believes this makes it more important than ever to have robust systems in place to manage these requests and prevent HR getting overloaded. Following the Government’s announcement of how it will […]

The charity Mind has warned that mental health is ‘worsening across the spectrum’. Mind surveyed 6,000 Brits during lockdown last year and found that half of adults felt their wellbeing had worsened during 2020, with many experiencing mental health problems for the first time. Those aged 18-44 were most affected. New figures from the Office of […]

With the August Bank holiday coming up and because many people have delayed their holidays due to the pandemic, employers are being urged to remind workers about the importance of taking annual leave for their mental wellbeing. Recently the NHS Confederation highlighted that doctors are seeing a rise in people reporting severe mental health difficulties, following […]

The news that holidaymakers will need to quarantine for two weeks after returning from Spain highlights one of the major challenges facing employers as the UK tries to get back to normal working life, says Adrian Lewis at Activ Absence. Spain was added to the UK’s quarantine earlier this week with just a few hours’ warning. This […]

The British Medical Association (BMA) has warned this week that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic could lead to a mental health crisis in the UK unless extra support is provided. Other research from Bupa UK found that despite high rates of poor mental health during the pandemic, just one in 20 people (5%) has […]

Adrian Lewis, Director at Activ Absence, on TV binge viewing leading to sickies & what employers can do about it… New research from the Radio Times[i] has found that almost one in five people (18%) have said they had specifically called in sick so they could watch TV at home. They also found that half of […]