To ask Her Majesty's Government how they will close the gap between the rates of private and public sector employee absence, in the light of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development's annual absence management survey, which found that workplace absence costs the economy £17.3 billion. [HL5295]

Employee absence is a matter for employers. However, the Government's Public Services Forum (PSF) has included tackling sickness absence in public services within its work programme.

Whilst the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development's survey found that the average level of public sector employee absence is higher than in the private sector, it also explained that differences in workforce demographics are likely to account for some of this gap.