Increase in Long-Term Sick Leave
The absenteeism report, commissioned by the umbrella organization of social insurance carriers together with the Chamber of Labor and the Economic Chamber, focuses particularly on long-term sick leave this year.
Days in Long-Term Sick Leave Are Increasing
These have been documented since 1990, defined as incapacities to work of more than seven weeks or with a duration of 43 days or longer. There is a significant increase over time. While in 1990, 31.6 percent of all sick leave days were due to long-term sick leaves, this proportion was 39.2 percent in 2024. In terms of sick leave cases, the proportion is declining: It fell from 4.3 to 2.9 percent over the same period.
Cases with continuous absence of at least 40 days (this definition was used in the further part of the analysis) accounted for 3.1 percent of all sick leave cases, but caused around 40 percent of the total sick leave days. Considering all cases with a cumulative 40 sick leave days in the year, it is even 18.3 percent of the cases that were responsible for more than half (54.0 percent) of the sick leave days.
In long-term sick leaves, the majority of absentee days were concentrated on the three diagnoses "injuries," "musculoskeletal disorders," and "mental disorders." According to Wifo analysis, a reduction in long-term sick leaves by ten percent could generate 2.6 million additional working days. This corresponds to about 7,000 full-time employees.
Overall, the average number of sick leave days per employed person in the decade before Covid was around 13 days. From 2022, there was a significant increase (2020 and 2021 are only partially comparable because pandemic-related absences were not recorded as sick leave cases). The direct and indirect costs caused by illness-related absences amounted to around 5.8 billion euros or 1.2 percent of the gross domestic product in 2024.
"We Cannot Afford Inaction"
During the presentation of the study on Wednesday, the deputy Wifo director Christine Mayrhuber emphasized the importance of prevention. "We cannot afford inaction," she said, as it costs extremely much, especially in the health sector.
For Peter McDonald, currently chairman of the umbrella association of social insurance carriers, it is important to keep people employed longer. He wants to support self-responsible behavior for one's own health promotion with incentives, but also focus on cancer prevention. The issue of sick leave abuse should also be addressed.
Wolfgang Panhölzl from the AK also advocated for prevention and age-appropriate workplaces, especially because the government has set the goal of increasing employment among older people. More investment is needed here, and it should not be financed stingily. Rolf Gleißner (WK) emphasized that a sick leave day costs a company an average of 250 euros. The focus should be on maintaining health and involving the employment service more in reintegration.
(APA/Red)
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