Absenteeism & Bradford Factor: Measuring WHP Metrics Correctly

Why are metrics the foundation of every WHP?

No data, no WHP – at least not one that has a lasting effect. Many companies start health programs based on gut feeling: low morale among staff, a sense of many absences, rumors about turnover. What’s missing is a reliable data basis that shows where the real problem lies and whether measures are effective.

The three most important WHP metrics are **absenteeism**, the **turnover rate**, and the **Bradford Factor**. Absenteeism is calculated from the number of sick days in relation to the target working hours – expressed as a percentage. According to official statistics from the German Federal Ministry of Health (KM1), the German national average in 2025 was **5.66%**. If your value is consistently above this, it’s a clear signal that action is needed. If it’s consistently below, it would be naive to assume that everything is running optimally – it’s possible that no one is reporting sick who should be (presenteeism).

What does the Bradford Factor measure – and why does frequency matter more than duration?

The Bradford Factor makes visible what a simple absence rate conceals: Someone who is sick three times for a short period puts more strain on the company than someone who is absent once for two weeks. The formula is:

**B = S² × D**

Here, **S** stands for the number of absence episodes in the period under review (e.g., one year) and **D** for the total number of sick days. Example: Three episodes of illness with two days each result in B = 3² × 6 = **54**. A single illness lasting six days results in B = 1² × 6 = **6**. There are no universally valid threshold values; literature and practice use different levels. Our metric analysis assigns the value per person over the last twelve months to four fixed levels: **below 50** normal, **50–124** elevated, **125–399** high, **from 400** critical. These are guideline values – they say nothing about the cause and do not replace a conversation.

Important: The Bradford Factor is not a sanctioning tool, but an early warning signal. It helps to identify potential stress situations early – before they escalate. Values per person are based on sick notes and are therefore health data (Art. 9 GDPR). In Germany, a works council, where one exists, is involved in such an evaluation (§ 87 Para. 1 No. 6 of the German Works Constitution Act, BetrVG). That’s why the Bradford Factor is deactivated by default with us; it is only activated deliberately in the metrics data entry when the basis has been clarified.

How do you move from spreadsheets to automatic analysis?

The most common mistake in practice: absenteeism and the Bradford Factor are managed in Excel – with all the known problems. Manual entry errors, outdated export data from the HR system, no historical comparability. Anyone who wants to create monthly reports spends more time maintaining data than analyzing it.

Better: The raw data comes directly from the HR system – Personio, DATEV, or rexxHR – and is evaluated automatically. This creates trend curves over quarters, department comparisons, and early outlier alerts, without anyone having to enter a single number by hand. For management reporting, a few clicks are enough instead of half a working day. How you can analyze short- and long-term absences separately is explained in the guide Analyze Absences.