Small business owners are being urged to sign up for free DWP occupational health training before the March 31 deadline, with warnings that replacing an employee lost to ill-health costs over £11,000

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has issued a warning of an £11,000 cost ahead of a March 31deadline.

Small business owners and managers are being urged to take advantage of a free government-backed scheme before it closes at the end of next month. The alert comes as recent figures show that losing just one employee due to ill-health can cost a small business more than £11,000.

The DWP is now promoting its free ‘Support with Occupational Health’ training, designed to help create a ‘healthier, more resilient workforce’.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, DWP said: “Replacing an employee lost to ill-health costs small businesses over £11,000. Our free training course will help you build a healthier, more resilient workforce.”

The department added that nearly 2,000 managers have already signed up to the programme. Urging people to ‘sign up now’, it emphasised that the deadline to register is March 31, reports the Mirror.

The training is part of a wider initiative to help Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) better manage sickness absence and support staff living with disabilities or long-term health conditions. Delivered through the International Workplace platform, the ‘Support with Occupational Health’ (SOH) course is aimed at businesses with between 1 and 249 employees based in England.

The online course is designed to be flexible, taking around 60 to 90 minutes to complete. It equips managers with the necessary tools and confidence to: For many small businesses, the loss of a key staff member can be significant.

Beyond the £11,000 cost associated with recruitment and training for a replacement, sickness absence can result in a decrease in productivity and increased strain on remaining team members.

Government data indicates that by intervening early and providing the right support, many employees who leave the workforce due to health issues could have stayed in their roles.

How to sign up

The course is free and results in a certificate of completion upon finishing. To register or learn more about the eligibility criteria, you can visit the official Support with Occupational Health website here.