Excessive stress pushed workers to go on leave 30% more often in 5 years

Extended absences from work due to stress-related complaints has increased by 30 percent in the past five years. This includes absence due to stress or burnout, said occupational health and safety service providers ArboNed and HumanCapitalCare. The organizations said it was a worrying increase and a risk to the labor market and society.

In the period from July 2023 to June 2024, there was an 8 percent increase in absenteeism due to stress complaints. The total absenteeism percentage increased slightly to 4.7 percent. The highest number of cases of leave was reported in three sectors, healthcare, industrial, and transport and storage.

One in four sick days is caused by stress complaints, the study found. The average duration of absenteeism due to stress is 245 days in total and can increase to more than 300 days, or about ten months.

“We see absenteeism due to these complaints increasing year after year,” said Jurriaan Penders, company doctor and director of medical affairs at HumanCapitalCare. “On an annual basis, that increase is already considerable. If we look at the trend over the past five years, it is really worrying. Such an increase can ultimately pose a risk to the continuity of working Netherlands, the labor market and society in general.”

Brooding, listlessness and tension are often the first symptoms. “Afterwards, these complaints are recognized by the employee, manager or colleagues. But even if the signals are observed in time, they are not always discussed. That is a shame, because in that early phase, you can often make small adjustments to ensure that complaints do not get worse and perhaps even prevent someone from going on leave,” said Penders.