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Absenteeism in 2022: significant monthly differences, mental health absenteeism continues to rise

Son – 22 December 2022. In November 2022, the average rate of absenteeism in the Netherlands remained 4.8%, the same as the previous month. The number of reported absences fell slightly. That was revealed from statistics from health and safety services ArboNed and HumanCapitalCare, both part of HumanTotalCare and serving around 1 million employees and over 63,000 employers. These statistics come at the end of a year in which monthly absenteeism fluctuated significantly. A year in which mental health-related absenteeism and the impact of Covid and flu were features in an increasingly tight labour market.

In November too: absenteeism remains higher than in the pre-Covid period

The number of reported absences linked to Covid fell in November, while flu-related absenteeism remained the same. 'At 4.8%, the rate of absenteeism has remained constant compared with the previous month,' says Redmer van Wijngaarden, director of medical affairs at ArboNed. 'However, we are seeing that absenteeism is consistently higher than before the Covid pandemic. In 2019, the rate of absenteeism was 4.5% in November.' At the beginning of December, occupational health and safety service providers saw a rise in the number of flu-related absences. Around 30% of all reported absences were due to flu.

Annual trends in absenteeism

The impact of Covid – as well as flu – was visible in the absenteeism throughout the year. The year was characterised by huge fluctuations in a short space of time. In most cases, this was due to a strong rise or fall in the number of Covid or flu cases. However, rising long-term mental health-related absenteeism also played a role. Furthermore, there was also the effect of the increasingly tight labour market in 2022.

View the infographic 'annual overview absenteeism 2022 to november' here.

First quarter: Covid and flu-related absenteeism continued to increase

The year started in January 2022 with an average rate of absenteeism of 5.0%. For the first time since the start of the pandemic, over half of the reported absences were caused by Covid. Due to the milder variant, employees with Covid recovered more quickly than the year before. In February, the number of reported absences related to Covid rose again. This led to an average rate of absenteeism of 5.5%. However, the peak came in March. At this point, the rate of absenteeism rose to 5.6% with a record number of reported absences caused by flu and Covid: 11 reports for every 100 employees. After a longer period of compulsory working from home, the working population in the Netherlands had now returned to the office.

Second quarter: average absenteeism reached a turning point and fell; mental health-related absenteeism rose

In April, absenteeism reached a turning point and the rate of absenteeism fell to 4.8%. Covid and flu retreated, and employers shifted their attention to the care for and employability of employees in this tight labour market. A month later, the average rate of absenteeism had virtually returned to pre-Covid levels at 4.3%. However, the number of Covid infections rose again in June, whereby employers were expressly advised to stay alert to preventing infection by flu and Covid on the work floor. In addition to this rise, ArboNed and HumanCapitalCare also saw that long-term absenteeism caused by poor mental health was 10% higher than in the same period before Covid.

Third quarter: big monthly variations

Despite the holiday period, absenteeism rose in July, mainly due to Covid, to 4.5%. However, the situation changed when Covid-related absenteeism failed to materialise in August and absenteeism suddenly fell to the pre-pandemic levels of August 2019. The falling rate of absenteeism was short-lived. In September, flu and Covid-related absenteeism rose again: from 4.0% to 4.3%.

Fourth quarter: absenteeism rose and stays constant

The fourth quarter started in October with a small peak in Covid and an increase in flu symptoms. Absenteeism subsequently rose significantly to 4.8%. In November, this situation stayed unchanged. It is yet to be seen what absenteeism will be in December.

The impact of Covid, flu and mental health

Covid and flu will remain a feature in the new year. For the New Year, ArboNed and HumanCapitalCare are particularly focusing on mental health-related absenteeism as an important point for attention. Van Wijngaarden: 'Mental health issues are causing more and more absences, although in many cases this can be prevented with the right and timely help. This is always custom work. Particularly in this tight labour market, it's important that the employer and employee both stay alert to maintaining the right balance.'