Our library

Growing demand for flexible working and an increasing recognition of its broad benefits have pointed to the need for practical, evidence-based guidance to help people professionals and their organisations to implement it.

This CIPD guide, produced in collaboration with Affinity Health, explores the effective...

The Digital Mindsets project aims to develop our understanding of people's attitudes and beliefs regarding technology and change in the workplace (their digital mindset) and use this understanding to help support people through change, thus ensuring a more inclusive workplace.

Affinity Health at Work...

Supervisors play an important role in supporting employees to return to work following sickness absence due to common mental disorders; stress, anxiety and depression, however, employees may not always feel supported. We examined employees' perceptions of their supervisors' attitudes and behaviours pre,...

This study investigated the relationships between the context of home-based teleworking during the pandemic (pandemic-teleworking conditions), productivity perceptions during home-based teleworking, and employees' future teleworking inclinations (FTI) beyond the pandemic. Specifically, the study examined...

This guide has been developed for colleagues to help them support an employee to return to and stay in work following absence due to mental ill-health drawing on research conducted with the University of Sheffield.

This guide has been developed for HR professionals to support employees to return to and stay in work following absence due to mental ill-health drawing on research conducted with the University of Sheffield.

This guide has been developed for managers to support employees to return to and stay in work following absence due to mental ill-health drawing on research conducted with the University of Sheffield.

This guide has been developed for individuals who are returning to work to support them in returning to and stayin in work following absence due to mental ill-health drawing on research conducted with the University of Sheffield.

Mindfulness is increasingly being used within leadership development to enhance managers' wellbeing and leadership capability. Given the relational nature of leadership, we posit that an interpersonal form of mindfulness has the potential to offer benefits over and above those provided by personal or...

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the way workers with common mental disorders use job crafting to adjust their work to their levels of functioning after returning from long-term sick leave. Thirty-eight workers who had returned within the last 24-months from sickness absence due to...

Despite international business travel being seen as essential for global business and indeed advantageous in term of career progression for employees; there is evidence that international business travel can be deleterious to health. The study not only uncovers the psychological implications of business...

This review set out to understand what leaders and organisational cultures can learn about supporting doctors who experience second victim phenomenon; the types, levels and availability of support offered; and the psychological symptoms experienced. A systematic review of keywords 'Medical Error' [MeSH],...

This paper provides guidance on the identification and management of Long COVID - particularly regarding return to work. This guidance has been produced by members of The Society of Occupational Medicine Long COVID Group, of which our Managing Partner Jo Yarker is a member, and other work and health...

A growing body of research demonstrates the impact of management behavior on a range of individual and organizational health and wellbeing outcomes; however, efforts to train and develop managers often fall short. This chapter focuses on research to identify competencies–or the collection of skills,...

Over 15 million people live with a long-term health condition in the UK1 and in 2019/20, there were 32.5 million estimated working days lost due to work-related ill health2. Having good management practices gives employee the best chance of staying in work and fulfilling their potential.

This guide introduces...

Remote working has become increasingly common in the modern workforce, hugely accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning that support for wellbeing in organisations has had to adapt to a new context. The aim of this research, carried out by Affinity Health at Work on behalf of the International SOS...

Mental ill-health is the leading cause of sickness absence, creating a high economic burden. Workplace interventions aimed at supporting employers in the prevention of mental ill-health in the workforce are urgently required. Managing Minds at Work is a digital intervention aimed at supporting line managers...

Purpose: There has been a rapid increase in the number of mental health interventions implemented in the
workplace. The efficacy of these interventions has been mixed. The factors influencing implementation may offer
insights to why some interventions fail to be effective.
Method: We conducted a meta-synthesis...

Parenthood can be one of the most fulfilling, altering, and challenging life events. This book is set within the background of the reality of many parents' return-to-work experience, the task of re-engaging with work and maintaining a job or a career, and the difficulties that parenthood poses for balancing...

This review examined the extent, nature and quality of the current empirical evidence for physical workplace adjustment to support occupational longevity, performance and health/well-being in ND workers because of their specific sensory needs. Our results indicate that the research is generally not well-developed,...

The cost of sickness absence has major social, psychological, and financial implications for individuals and organisations. Return-to-work (RTW) interventions that support good quality communication and contact with the workplace can reduce the length of sickness absence by between 15 to 30 days. However,...

Sustainable return to work in mental health issues; what works for whom?

Sustainable return to work (SRTW) for workers with common mental disorders (CMDs) presents a major societal challenge in terms of scale and costs. Approximately 15% of the working population suffer from CMDs such as depression, anxiety and adjustment disorders (OECD, 2014) and for 50% their experience...

This report provides an overview of the resources required to support people returning to work following mental health sickness absence Sustainable return to work is a challenge in the UK and beyond, with too many people existing the workplace following an initial return.

We conducted semi-structured...

No systematic review had previously been conducted examining the benefits mindfulness or meditation interventions for leaders and managers. However, the literature suggested that such interventions would have a positive impact on leaders' own well-being, their leadership capability, their 'post-conventional'...

This study provides analysis and insight into the views and experiences of 12 top executives of FTSE 350 companies about appointing women to their boards, against background growth in the number of female non-executive directors but the number of female executive director appointments showing no progress....

This review examines the evidence and guidance available to inform practices around work adjustments for mental health at work.
It is important that employees experiencing mental ill-health are able to access the support they need to return to work following sickness absence, stay in work and continue...