A new index has been launched by the CBI to help businesses benchmark their staff health provision.

The World Health Index is supported by Business for Health, the NHS and government.

Brian McBride, CBI president, said: “Labour market resilience is a precondition to growth. Without healthy, productive employees, the UK economy will be unable to achieve the growth it sorely needs.

“Businesses understand the link between health and wealth, and have a major role to play. While the NHS continues to serve us all in our moments of immediate need, employers across the UK have a golden window emerging from the pandemic to lean into long-term measures which enhance employee health and wellbeing.

“With the UK staring down a fiscally constrained period, the moment to boost the UK’s preventative health model is now. The Work Health Index is here to help achieve just that.” 

Data shows the UK loses 131 million working days a year to ill-health, costing the nation around £180 billion in GDP.

Firms can see the beta version of the Work Health Index here.