Sickness absence among blue-collar workers in the retail and wholesale industry during the COVID-19 pandemic; a longitudinal cohort study

Sickness absence (SA) changed in various occupations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim was to investigate the prevalence of all-cause sickness absence (SA) during the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to in the preceding years, as well as factors associated with all-cause SA and SA due to COVID-19 and COVID-like diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic among blue-collar workers in the retail and wholesale industry. A population-based longitudinal cohort study using microdata linked from nationwide registers in Sweden. All 297 378 blue-collar employees aged 18-67 years in wholesale and retail in 2019 were followed during 2016-2021 regarding SA in spells > 14 days. Yearly prevalence rates were calculated for all-cause SA in sociodemographic and occupational groups. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for all-cause SA and SA due to COVID-19 or COVID-like diagnoses in 2020 and 2021. The annual prevalences of SA were 7.5-8% in 2016-2018, 10% in 2020, and 9% in 2021. The prevalence of SA due to COVID-19 or COVID-like diagnoses was 2.1% in 2020 and 1.6% in 2021. The OR was higher in the older age groups (OR age 55-64 = 2.38, 95% CI 2.20-2.57 compared to age 25-34). There were few significant occupational differences, however, warehouse and terminal staff had a higher OR (1.37, 1.27-1.48) than sales assistants, daily goods. While SA rates increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, the distribution of SA between sociodemographic or occupational groups did not change markedly. The distribution of SA due to COVID-19 and COVID-like diagnoses was similar to all-cause SA.