Off sick? You need to phone your boss, back-to-work adviser says

Image source, Getty ImagesByLucy HookerBusiness reporterPublished23 September 2026, 11:40 BSTUpdated 58 minutes agoPeople off sick from work should keep in phone contact with their boss, government-appointed back-to-work expert Sir Charlie Mayfield has said.

Getting bosses and workers to have a conversation, rather than simply exchanging emails and sicknotes, could help get people back into work, Sir Charlie, who is leading the Keep Britain Working taskforce, said.

His latest report said health-related economic inactivity was costing Britain around £210bn a year in benefit payments and lost output.

The report calls for more workplace support, external for people with health conditions and disabilities and the establishment of a Workplace Health System alongside the NHS.

But improving communication was also a way to "rehumanise" the workplace and help prevent people dropping out of work altogether, Sir Charlie said.

The report does not suggest that someone struck down by flu needs to croak through their symptoms over the phone or that bosses need to provide down-the-line sickbed sympathy if an employee is off with food poisoning.

"I'm not worried about a day here and a day there. It is more about longer term issues," Sir Charlie told the BBC's Today Programme.

But he said Britain was doing a "poor job" of handling sickness in the workplace, leading to more people becoming disengaged and dropping out altogether.

"I have met so many people who have said to me, 'You know, I was signed off sick and I was off sick for a month, two months, three months, and I had almost no contact with my employer'," Sir Charlie said.

Around 300,000 people leave work every year with a health condition, much of which is preventable, the report said.

Sir Charlie said employees sometimes feared talking about long-term health issues with their employer.

"But the fear is also felt by employers as well because they're afraid of causing offence or creating a complaint or a grievance," he added.