London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Tottenham 1959
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Tottenham]
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Annual Sickness and Accident Absence Sate related to Age Groups
| Category of Staff | Age Group | All Groups | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 25 | 25/ /44 | 45/ /54 | Over 54 | ||
| (a) MALE STAFF | |||||
| (i) Manual Workers | |||||
| Number in each age group | 60 | 221 | 254 | 297 | 832 |
| Days absence in 3 years | 1519 | 10872 | 12201 | 21686 | 46278 |
| Annual Absence Rate in working days | 8.4 | 16.4 | 16.0 | 24.3 | 18.5 |
| (ii) Non-Manual Workers | |||||
| Number in each age gr cup | 49 | 118 | 64 | 50 | 281 |
| Days absence in 3 years | 756 | 1402 | 1413 | 2764 | 6335 |
| Annual Absence Rate in working days | 5.0 | 4.0 | 7.4 | 18.4 | 7.5 |
| (b) FEMALE STAFF | |||||
| (i) Manual Workers | |||||
| Number in each age group | 1 | 23 | 31 | 43 | 98 |
| Days absence in 3 years | 53 | 1038 | 1401 | 2524 | 5016 |
| Annual Absence Rate in working days | 17.7 | 15.0 | 15.1 | 19.6 | 17.1 |
| (ii) Non Manual Workers | |||||
| Number in each age group | 21 | 42 | 17 | 8 | 88 |
| Days absence in 3 years | 761 | 914 | 769 | 256 | 2700 |
| Annual Absence Rate in working days | 11.7 | 7.3 | 15.1 | 10.9 | 10.2 |
The overall absence amongst male manual staff was more than double that of the indoor staff,
the greatest difference being in the 25-44 age group where absenteeism was four times as great.
Among female staff the difference was not so marked but here again the difference was most
noticeable in the 25-44 age group
No significant difference was observed in those medically examined on entrance (established
posts) and those not so examined (unestablished).
In analysing sickness spells commencing during the three years under review the whole
period of sickness up to the date of return to duty has been included although this might be
extended to the following year and cases already absent at the beginning of the period have been
disregarded. Where prolonged ''spells" were not concluded at the time the data was analysed the
sickness period was taken up to the 31st March, 1959 with a consequent curtailment of the related
days' sickness to 59,283 compared with the 60,329 days actually lost in the three years. There
was a total of 5,583 sickness spells, an average of 4.3 periods of continued absence per employee
or an annual inception rate of 1.4. Over half of these periods, 2,943, involved absences of one
to three days each and under the sick pay scheme did not require the production of medical
certificates. In six cases the absence lasted longer than one year, the causes being pulmonary
tuberculosis, psychoneurosis, degenerative heart disease, hypertension, and twocases of vascular
lesions of the central nervous system.