Former John Lewis Chair Advocates for Addressing Workplace Sickness to Boost Economy

Tackling unemployment linked to long-term illness could unlock significant economic growth, according to Sir Charlie Mayfield, former chair of John Lewis. He has launched the 'Get Britain Working' taskforce, which has already secured the participation of over 250 of the UK's largest employers, including British Airways, Tesco, and Royal Mail, along with several government departments.

The initiative aims to prevent individuals from leaving the workforce due to ill-health and to facilitate the return of those who are currently signed off. Official figures indicate that this issue costs the UK an estimated £212 billion annually.

Companies involved in the taskforce will monitor sickness absence rates, return-to-work outcomes, and disability participation. The government has stated that this will provide visibility into workplace health performance for the first time.

Sir Charlie highlighted that many individuals on long-term sick leave have had no contact with their employers, not due to malice but because of a breakdown in communication. "We've got a situation at the minute where people don't talk to each other when they really need to," he told the BBC.

His initiative comes amid growing pressure on the government to reduce the welfare bill. With welfare spending forecast to represent 23.6% of the total government expenditure in the 2025-2026 financial year, Sir Charlie suggested his plans could contribute to lowering this figure. "Fixing these problems at the fundamental level, could make a really big contribution to getting this economy working better — for employers, for employees, for the taxpayer, for all of us," he stated.

Sir Charlie believes this is a win-win scenario, emphasizing that it is "not a zero-sum game." He expressed optimism that the plans would receive support, particularly from figures like Andy Burnham, given his focus on "good growth."

He described getting people back into work due to ill-health as a straightforward method to expand the workforce, stating, "This is basically growth hiding in plain sight."