Over half (60%) of business owners surveyed by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) said their staff have been absent as they couldn’t access public services.
This affected over a third (35%) of people who were waiting for hospital treatment and a fifth of those who needed to care for a loved one due to a lack of carers available to do it for them.
The joint third-most persistent reasons to be unable to work due to public service conditions were waiting for mental health care and inability to access childcare, which both hit 17% of the staff of 500 business leaders.
Over two-thirds (69%) of the respondents said a better NHS capacity for medical appointments to be accessed quicker would improve their business.
More investment in public transport and better-quality schools were earmarked by 65% and 66% of the business leaders as priorities for the Government to address in the upcoming Autumn Statement.
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The union body has urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to introduce a public sector workforce commission that can advise the Labour Party on how to deliver services as strongly as possible.
It also called for taxes and pay in the public sector to fund and then improve the working conditions for staff in public sector roles.
In a speech today ahead of the Labour Party’s first Budget in Government for 14 years, Keir Starmer said he would “prevent devastating austerity” in public spending.
‘Great public services make a great place for business’
Paul Nowak, the TUC’s general secretary, said: “A country with great public services is a great place to do business. You’ve got a healthy and skilled workforce, travel is fast and reliable, and your workers can access the care services they and their families need.
“But the Conservatives left our public services in complete disrepair. Our polling shows that more than half of businesses report losing staff time because they have problems accessing vital public services. This is having a massive impact on working people, companies, and the economy.”
Nowak added: “It’s time to fix the foundations of our economy – and that means fixing our public services. The Chancellor knows already how desperate people are for an end to NHS waiting lists, and access to affordable childcare and decent schools. She clearly has the green light from businesses to prioritise public services too.”
