Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time was 1.6 Weeks per year per person in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
1.6 Weeks per year per person
Change on year
down 11.1%
World rank
15th
of 23 countries
All-time high
2.7 Weeks per year per person
in 2003
All-time low
1.6 Weeks per year per person
in 2020
Years of data
18
2003–2020

Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2003–2020

01232003201120202003: 2.7 Weeks per year per person2004: 2.6 Weeks per year per person2005: 2.5 Weeks per year per person2006: 2.4 Weeks per year per person2007: 2.4 Weeks per year per person2008: 2.2 Weeks per year per person2009: 2.2 Weeks per year per person2010: 2.1 Weeks per year per person2011: 2 Weeks per year per person2012: 2 Weeks per year per person2013: 2 Weeks per year per person2014: 1.9 Weeks per year per person2015: 1.9 Weeks per year per person2016: 1.9 Weeks per year per person2017: 1.8 Weeks per year per person2018: 1.9 Weeks per year per person2019: 1.8 Weeks per year per person2020: 1.6 Weeks per year per person

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Weeks per year per person.

Analysis

In 2020, sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland stood at 1.6 Weeks per year per person. That is the lowest value across all 18 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 11.1% on the previous year and down 23.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 2.7 Weeks per year per person in 2003 and was at its lowest, 1.6 Weeks per year per person, in 2020.

That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 15th out of 23 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.

Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year

Annual values for Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time dependent employees, annual averages in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2003 to 2020.
Year Weeks per year per person Change
2003 2.7 Weeks per year per person
2004 2.6 Weeks per year per person -3.7%
2005 2.5 Weeks per year per person -3.8%
2006 2.4 Weeks per year per person -4.0%
2007 2.4 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2008 2.2 Weeks per year per person -8.3%
2009 2.2 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2010 2.1 Weeks per year per person -4.5%
2011 2 Weeks per year per person -4.8%
2012 2 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2013 2 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2014 1.9 Weeks per year per person -5.0%
2015 1.9 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2016 1.9 Weeks per year per person +0.0%
2017 1.8 Weeks per year per person -5.3%
2018 1.9 Weeks per year per person +5.6%
2019 1.8 Weeks per year per person -5.3%
2020 1.6 Weeks per year per person -11.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 2.43 Weeks per year per person 2.2 Weeks per year per person 2.7 Weeks per year per person 7
2010s 1.93 Weeks per year per person 1.8 Weeks per year per person 2.1 Weeks per year per person 10
2020s 1.6 Weeks per year per person 1.6 Weeks per year per person 1.6 Weeks per year per person 1

Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

  1. 12 Switzerland 2.2 Weeks per year per person compare
  2. 13 Denmark 2.1 Weeks per year per person compare
  3. 14 Canada 1.9 Weeks per year per person compare
  4. 15 Ireland 1.6 Weeks per year per person compare
  5. 17 Luxembourg 1.5 Weeks per year per person compare
  6. 18 United States of America 1.1 Weeks per year per person compare

See the full ranking of 32 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 1.6 Weeks per year per person in 2020, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 2.7 Weeks per year per person in 2003.
What is the lowest sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 1.6 Weeks per year per person in 2020.
How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time?
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 15th out of 23 countries with data for 2020.
Is sickness absences from work — sickness absences of full-time rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is down 23.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time dependent employees, annual averages. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 24 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/sickness-absences-from-work-sickness-absences-of-full-time-dependent-employees-annual/united-kingdom/

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About this data

Indicator
Sickness absences from work — Sickness absences of full-time dependent employees, annual averages
Unit
Weeks per year per person
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
32 places, 737 data points, 1997–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset presents time series on sickness absences of full-time dependent employees, annual averages. Data are expressed in number of weeks of sickness absences per year, self-reported, covering both full and part-week absences. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.