Why the 'Keep Britain Working' Review Matters

The Keep Britain Working review is, for me, a timely and important read. It arrives at a moment when we urgently need systemic change in how organisations view people.

The data speaks for itself:

• 1 in 5 working-age people is now out of work.
• 2.8 million working-age people are economically inactive due to health conditions — I was nearly one of them.
• More people are in work with work-limiting health conditions or disabilities than ever before — this nearly included me.
• Without action, another 600,000 could leave work by 2030 — that won't include me.
• Only 53% of disabled people are in work.
• Economic inactivity caused by ill-health costs the UK £212 billion a year.
• Sickness absence is at a 15-year high, 50% higher than in 2019.

At the root of this lies short-term thinking - profit, quarterly targets, and political cycles pursued at the expense of long-term health. The irony is that this short-term focus ultimately harms the very things it seeks to protect: people, organisations, society and profit itself.

Short-term pressures show up everywhere: rising costs of living, employers chasing margins, and employees under stress. Autonomy is pulled, fulfilment fades, morale dips, and illness rises. Trust erodes on both sides. Employees fear speaking up about their health; managers fear saying the wrong thing. Communication breaks down exactly when understanding and support are most needed.

One passage in the report struck me deeply: “Our society is getting older and living longer, but becoming sicker sooner.” From my own research and personal experience, this comes down largely to two factors:

• Lack of exercise — Our working environments aren't designed for health. Long hours at desks and sedentary routines silently degrade our physical health and longevity.
• Poor nutrition — Diets dominated by quick, convenient, processed foods. Ironically, these are the result of short-term thinking by companies chasing profit, exploiting our survival instincts for sugar and fat. The short-term dopamine hit has long-term costs - inflammation, fatigue, mitochondrial dysfunction, and the chronic diseases of our time.

This was my life. My diet and work habits left me in pain, overweight, and exhausted. Shifting to a whole-food diet and regular exercise changed everything - physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Flipping the switch from short-term gain to long-term, people-first thinking changes the game. It's not easy. It takes time, leadership, and commitment, but it can be done, and it's worth it.

When that switch is flipped:

• Employees know their organisation will stand by them when life or illness intervenes and downturns happen.
• Managers stop managing people and start managing what people need.
• Fear gives way to trust, flexibility, and shared purpose.

In these environments, leadership stops staring at what's directly ahead and starts looking up and out. New opportunities emerge, ideas flow, autonomy and meaning return. Workplaces open their doors wider to disabled, neurodivergent, and chronically ill people, because humanity is part of the culture.

Reports like Keep Britain Working shine a light on the problem, but it's on all of us leaders, employees, consultants, and people to act on it and do better.

That's the future I believe in.

Positively optimistic,
Phil

---

Reference

• Keep Britain Working Review
• Employers join forces with government to tackle ill-health and keep Britain working
• BBC: Britain sliding 'into economic crisis' over £85bn sickness bill, ex-John Lewis boss warns