That is the finding presented today, Thursday 7 January 2015, to the annual conference of the British Psychological Society’s Division of Occupational Psychology in Nottingham by Gail Kinman Professor of Occupational Health Psychology at the University of Bedfordshire.

The research, conducted with Dr Andrew Clements and Dr Jacqui Hart, also from the University, involved 1682 prison officers from across the UK completing questionnaires about working while unwell and the reasons they may do this.  Levels of job demands, control and support at work and job-related burnout were also assessed.

The results showed that 84% of prison officers feel pressurised to work while unwell at least “sometimes”, whereas more than half “always” experience such pressure.  Staff shortages, pressure from management, fear of letting colleagues down and feelings of job insecurity were the main explanations provided for presenteeism.

Prison officers who found their work more demanding, and who lacked control and support from managers, were the most likely to work while sick.  This had serious implications for health as officers who continued to work when unwell on a regular basis were typically more burned out.

Professor Kinman said: “The findings of our research have serious implications for the health of prison officers and for the safe running of prisons.

“The number of prison officers has reduced dramatically and number of violent prisoner incidents is increasing rapidly. Although organisations may see presenteeism as a short-term solution to maintain safe staffing levels, it is considerably more costly long-term.

“Prison officers who continued to work while sick were more likely to be emotionally exhausted and have cynical attitudes towards prisoners. They were also more likely to worry about work when ‘off the job’.  The implications of the findings for the safe running of prisons are clear. Improved staffing levels and support from managers should help reduce presenteeism and the subsequent risks to staff and prisoners.”

ENDS

The Division of Occupational Psychology annual conference takes place from the 6 to 8 January 2015 at the East Midlands Conference Centre, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RJ.

See the conference website for the full programme of the DOP annual conference [PDF]