Impact of Influenza and Influenza-Like Illness on Work Productivity Outcomes: A Systematic Literature Review

The flu (‘influenza’) has an effect on patients, their families, employers, and society. A review of medical studies from 1995 to 2007 reported how having the flu or a flu-like illness causes people to miss work. We updated that paper using the same approach, and found 63 new studies from 2007 to February 2022. Overall, up to 75% of employees missed work when they had the flu or a flu-like illness. Their average time out of work was usually 2–3 days each time they were sick. Most employees who had the flu or flu-like illness also said that they continued to work while they were sick (60–80%). Most employed adults who were caregivers for someone else with the flu said that they missed work to care for someone else for an average of 1–2 days. Overall, people who were vaccinated against the flu missed less time from work compared with their peers who were not vaccinated. This review of published medical studies showed that the flu and flu-like illness has a meaningful impact on people’s ability to work, which also impacts their employers and society.