Purpose

The Luminate Cost of Stress Calculator provides organisations with an illustrative estimate of how much workplace stress may be costing in lost productivity, absence, and turnover. It is not a financial audit, but a tool to highlight the hidden business impact of unmanaged stress and underdeveloped leadership.

Data Sources

The calculator draws on the latest UK and international research, including:

• Oxford Economics 2014: The Cost of Brain DrainDeloitte UK (2024–25): Mental Health and Employers: The Case for Investment*
• Gallup (2024): State of the Global Workplace Report
• CIPD (2024): Benchmarking employee turnover
• CIPD (2025): Health and Wellbeing at Work
• UK Government (2024): Graduate earnings in the UK: 2024
• PwC (2024): UK Staff Turnover Benchmarks
• Institute for Public Policy Research (2024): Healthy Industry, Prosperous Economy**

*Note: When identifying a realistic, UK-specific cost of staff turnover, we traced every available source — including CIPD (2024) and PwC (2024) — back to Oxford Economics’ landmark study The Cost of Brain Drain (2014). That analysis estimated average replacement costs of £39,900 per employee in professional services, rising significantly for senior roles. Adjusted for wage growth since 2014, this equates to around £52,000 per leaver in professional services, with proportionally higher costs for leadership and specialist positions.

**Note:  To establish a realistic average cost of presenteeism per employee, we arrived at an annual estimate of £5,200 per person. This figure is derived from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR, 2024) report Healthy Industry, Prosperous Economy, which found that UK employees lose an average of 44 days of productivity each year by working while sick. This 44-day measure already accounts for uneven distribution across the workforce. Using the Office for National Statistics (ONS, 2024) median daily wage (approximately £118 net) multiplied by 44 gives a total productivity loss of around £5,200 per employee per year. Actual costs will be higher in organisations with above-average salaries. We consider this a realistic and evidence-based measure compared with the frequently quoted “three to five times annual salary” estimates found in wellbeing literature. Those higher figures include indirect or speculative effects — such as wider team disruption, innovation loss, or long-term cultural impact — whereas our model focuses on tangible productivity data and measurable working days lost.

Assumptions & Calculations

• Employee Numbers – entered by the user.
• Average Salary – either user-provided or defaulted to £42,000 (ONS, 2024: UK median for working-age graduates).
• Absenteeism – calculated from salary ÷ 280 working days × average absence days (default 9.4 days, CIPD 2025).
• Cost of Presenteeism – calculated as £5,200 per employee annually × total employees.
• Cost of Turnover – calculated as total employees × turnover rate (default 15%, CIPD 2025) × £30,614 replacement cost per leaver (Oxford Economics, 2014). 

Limitations

• Results are illustrative, and should not be treated as a financial audit.
• Local pay scales, company culture, benefits, and wellbeing provision can significantly affect actual costs

Why It Matters

Workplace stress is not just a wellbeing issue — it is a strategic and financial risk. The calculator highlights the scale of hidden costs and shows why investing in resilience and leadership capacity delivers measurable ROI.

Next Steps

For a tailored analysis of stress costs in your organisation, based on your workforce profile and sector, Luminate can provide a customised report with actionable insights