Council sick leave at record high as strain falls on ageing workforce, watchdog finds

Absence levels at Scottish councils have hit a new high as staff shortages and demand for services put extra strain on the ageing workforce, a watchdog has found.

Sickness absence days have rocketed since the pandemic and the Accounts Commission wants local authorities to improve workforce planning and deliver “more meaningful engagement with their staff”.

In a report published today, the local government watchdog says urgent action is needed to protect services and financial sustainability.

As many as 262,000 people work for the country's councils across areas like education, social work, waste services and leisure, an increase of 5.6 per cent since 2014. Total employment costs are now £10.3bn.

Only three per cent of staff are aged 24 and under, with 62 per cent now over 45 years old.

Sickness absence days hit 13.9 per employee in 2023-24, up 45 per cent since the pandemic took hold in 2020-21.

For teachers, the increase is almost double this, rocketing by 85 per cent over the period. Sickness absence days worked out at 7.6 per teacher in 2023-24.

Altogether, it meant 2.65 million days were lost to sick leave across councils during that year.

The watchdog noted that sickness absence has been trending up across the public sector, including in the Scottish Government and the NHS. However, levels in those workforces were still below those in councils.

The report stated: “Workforce pressures including recruiting staff from a competitive labour market, employee retention and high sickness absence levels are putting councils under sustained pressure.”

Many councils were found to have initiatives in place to address recruitment and retention challenges, it was found. However, “robust” plans which aid financial sustainability and wellbeing, and link to future skills needs and shared services are required, the Accounts Commission said.

This includes better use of data and digital.

Accounts Commission member Jennifer Henderson commented: “We all benefit from a skilled and motivated local government workforce; staff are the most important resource that councils have. Councils must fundamentally reform how they deliver services, and Scotland’s 260,000 council workers are crucial to this.

“Councils need to align their existing workforce plans with their priorities so they can ensure their workforces are the right size and shape, and their staff have the skills they will need. In particular, they need to ensure workers have the digital skills necessary for the scale of changes ahead. We have seen many councils already responding to this challenge, and there are valuable opportunities for local bodies to learn from each other.”

A spokesperson for councils body Cosla said: “The local government workforce is the bedrock of local service delivery, providing a wide range of essential services which support communities every day. Councils highly value their employees and recognise the crucial importance of a sustainable, resilient and skilled workforce. Cosla welcomes this report from the Accounts Commission, which reflects many of the complex workforce challenges facing not only councils but the wider public sector and beyond.

“The impact of continued funding and budgetary challenges facing authorities cannot be understated. Workforce planning and development capacity is in many cases limited due to reduced corporate functions, such as HR, as a result of real-terms cuts in Scottish Government’s funding of councils in recent years. It is also important to recognise the limitations that exist for options like hybrid working, when most local services, like bin collection or social care, require in-person delivery.

“Local government will consider the commission’s recommendations whilst continuing to build on the wide range of work already being progressed at both local and national level, seeking to address current workforce challenges, reform services, enhance digital solutions, and put robust plans in place for the future.”