Dissatisfied employees lost 77 days’ work due to absence and presenteeism last year according to research from Vitality.
As part of Vitality’s Britain’s Healthiest Workplace survey, participants were asked to rate their job satisfaction and anonymously share how fulfilled they are at their current place of work.
Those who were unhappy at work were shown to lose 91 per cent more productive time, compared to those who had said they were satisfied.
There was a particular correlation between employee satisfaction and mental health, with dissatisfied employees more likely to be at risk of depression (21 per cent vs 6 per cent) and more likely to have suffered burnout (33 per cent vs 9 per cent).
Vitality said that while employee satisfaction is complex, impacted by several factors including workloads, compensation and positive working culture, the findings highlight the importance carefully chosen benefits and a focus on health can have.
In fact, nearly half (46 per cent) of dissatisfied employees believe their employer could play a more active role in their health and wellbeing, compared to just a quarter (26 per cent) of satisfied employees.
Vitality director of corporate business Pippa Andrews says: “This data provides an interesting insight into how intrinsically linked a person’s health and wellbeing is to their job satisfaction. This raises an important question for employers to consider – whether they can improve employee productivity, satisfaction and health, through the same set of actions.
“Our findings point to the impact and productivity boost a business can get from prioritising health and wellbeing within their business, having a thought through strategy with interventions to support it and regular reporting and metrics.”