6 million during pandemic, 16 million working days lost in UK due to respiratory illness in 2022

The UK has seen a significant rise in employees taking sick leave due to respiratory illness. The number has risen by 10 million; what used to be 6 million in 2020, the year the world witnessed the pandemic. The stark rise in the numbers is not just concerning but rather alarming, as questions have been raised about the air quality and the little that is done to minimise the irritants in the air.

Speaking to news outlet The Times, Jonathan Blades, head of policy at Asthma + Lung UK, said, “At the heart of the issue is poor care, which is leading to worsening health and a spiral of repeat emergency visits to hospital.”

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Sarah Jones, who was also quoted in the publication, mentioned how she has been suffering from asthma since she was 16 and now finds it “completely out of control”. She was pointed out how she had to take six months off work in the last 18 months due to her severe illness. And now Jones is forced to work from home. Her flare-ups have been getting worse and triggering her asthma.

She added, “I went from being incredibly active and going on holidays, walking miles a day and taking my little girl to the park. I used to swim a lot, and I enjoyed concerts and holidays, but now I can’t do any of that.”

In response to Conservative Lord Kamall's request for data on workdays lost due to asthma, the ONS data was shared, which showed these staggering numbers on respiratory illness and not specifically on asthma. Labour's Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent wrote, "Unfortunately, we do not collect information regarding the type of sickness at a level of detail to identify those suffering from asthma specifically, but we can provide the number of working days lost due to respiratory conditions."

In the data shared between 2012 and 2022, only 2017 saw the lowest number, i.e., 3.7 million. After 2020, it only shot up for the worse.