Performance | Can employee wellbeing and the right manager support help to improve public sector productivity?

With budget cuts driving workforce reduction, public sector HR teams are tackling stress, absenteeism and mental ill health at the very moment they need to get the most from their staff. Here’s how one council achieved both goals.

Like many businesses, public sector HR teams face a dual challenge right now. The need for efficiency savings means more is being demanded from fewer staff – increasing stress while requiring ever-greater productivity and performance.

It’s no surprise that public sector absence rates are higher than average. For example, the Local Government Association says in 2016/17, 8.7 days were lost to sickness per full-time employee. Looking at the data, it’s clear that stress and anxiety, as well as poor manager support, are massive factors in this.

A performance culture starts with wellbeing