Number of stress-related sick days rises 12% in a year, 49% since 2021

Over the past year, the number of days employees in the Netherlands stayed home from work because of stress-related issues went up to 12 percent in the past year and 49 percent compared to five years ago. The absences are tied to workloads, financial problems, health concerns, and informal caregiving, according to occupational health services ArboNed and HumanCapitalCare, both part of HumanTotalCare.

“This increase is no surprise itself,” Redmer van Wijngaarden, occupational physician and medical director at ArboNed, told Nu.nl. “We have seen stress-related absenteeism climbing for years. The figures confirm that the trend is continuing.”

Redmer argues that this affects the whole of society. “Employees get stuck in their health and well-being, employers struggle with long-term absences and staff shortages, and the broader social impact is growing.”

From July 2025 to June 2026, the average rate of absenteeism in the Netherlands was at 4.9 percent. In a span of a year prior to that, it was 4.8 percent. According to the study, only 11 percent out of all the absence reports accounts for 83 percent of total sick days in the country.

“Most absence reports are short-term," said Van Wijngaarden. “If we want to reverse this trend, we need to better understand why people get stuck. We also need to recognize warning signs earler - before employees drop out for long periods.”