Study shows absentee rate increases with obesity level

Obese workers are more likely to miss work and clock up a higher number of sick days than healthier colleagues, with a study claiming employers will have to play a more prominent role in their employees’ eating habits.

Research into 540 workers in four multinational firms in Cork found that half of the participants were overweight (48%) and centrally obese (51%) and 15% were hypertensive, while almost 40% exceeded the daily upper limit of salt intake.

The study also found that the average number of predicted days absent from work was estimated at 1.8 days for non-obese employees, but estimated at 3.2 days for workers who were obese. It found that being in a managerial or supervisory position decreases the expected rate of absenteeism by 50%, while engaging in moderate levels of physical activity also cuts the expected rate of absenteeism by half.