To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many days sickness absence were taken by staff in her Department and its agencies in each of the last 12 months; and what the cost to her Department was of such absence. (305552)

Information about sick leave taken by staff in the Department for Work and Pensions is not reported in precisely the format requested. In accordance with cross-government arrangements, the Department reports sick leave using annual average working days lost (AWDL) per full-time employee. This is calculated and reported monthly on a rolling year basis.

The total amount of salary paid during periods of sickness leave between 1 November 2008 and 31 October 2009 totalled £62 million. For comparative purposes the cost of salary paid for sickness absence between November 2008 and October 2009 was 2 per cent. of the total pay bill for 2008-09, the latest available figure.

The Department has cut sickness absence by nearly a day per full-time employee, on average, in the last year and by nearly two days in the last two years. Further reducing sickness absence and its associated cost remains a major departmental priority.