UK Workforce Health Report 2026
Tracking hidden workforce health behaviours since 2021.
Pleasanteeism is rising, and employers are losing confidence in what works
Since 2021, Lime Health has been tracking a growing but often hidden issue in UK organisations: employees continuing to work while unwell and concealing physical or mental health challenges.
Lime Health introduced the term pleasanteeism to describe this pattern.
Four years on, the problem is accelerating. Many employers are investing in wellbeing, but without meaningful data, confidence in what’s working (and what’s worth continuing) is eroding.
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What the research shows
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Pleasanteeism is widespread
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69% of employees admit they sometimes, often, or always pretend to be well at work
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Up from 51% in 2021
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Consistent across sectors, ages, and job types
Meaning: this is now a mainstream workforce behaviour, not a fringe issue.
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The damage is tangible
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84% of HR leaders say workforce health challenges are harming productivity
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Hidden ill-health links to absence, disengagement, and retention risk
Meaning: the productivity issue is already visible, even if the root cause isn't.
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Employers lack the insight to act with confidence
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72% say they lack meaningful data from benefit providers
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Making it difficult to understand usage, impact, and value
Meaning: employers can’t defend spend internally, even when the need is obvious.
Where the disconnect sits
The challenge of declining workforce health is widely recognised,
but most employer health strategies are still built on assumption, incomplete usage signals, and open-loop benefits, making it hard to make confident decisions.
How this insight is being used
This research is not treated as a static report. It is used as market intelligence to support joint thinking and to help ensure the market develops solutions that genuinely address a growing workforce challenge.
Informs
It informs collaboration with advisers and partners on how to respond to pleasanteeism, hidden workforce health issues
Highlights needs
It highlights the need for measurable impact and data-led decision-making, not just more benefits
Shapes
It directly shapes the evolution of a more coherent, system-level response to workforce health challenges.
The findings are shared through WOW Elite, a group of 25 leading UK workforce health advisers, so employers can explore the insight with expert interpretation and practical next steps.
Request the report from an expert
Request access to the report and we’ll connect you with a WOW Elite adviser to interpret the findings in the context of your workforce