UAE employers should treat workforce health as a long term business priority, HR and wellbeing leaders said at the Future of the Workforce Summit in Dubai on 11 September 2026.
The speakers called for a broader approach to employee health. This should cover physical and mental wellbeing, workplace policies, leadership practices and the wider working environment.
Workforce health moves beyond traditional wellbeing
Dr Mansoor Habib, Head of Employee Wellbeing at du, said organisations should view employees as their “true capital”. He said wellbeing should not be treated as an optional initiative.
Habib shared the case of an employee who suffered a stroke and became fully paralysed. The employee returned to work after seven months after the company modified the job description and reduced working hours.
The company also conducted a return to work fitness assessment from an occupational health perspective. Fourteen years later, the employee remains with the company, Habib said.
The example highlighted how workplace support can affect employee recovery and retention over the longer term.
Presenteeism can signal wider workforce risks
The discussion also focused on presenteeism, where employees remain at work while dealing with stress, distress or burnout.
Ruediger Heim, Group Chief Human Resources Officer at Albatha Group, said presenteeism can affect productivity, decision making, innovation and workplace safety.
Heim said employees may be physically present but mentally affected by distress or burnout. He argued that employers need to identify early warning signs instead of relying only on attendance data.
According to Heim, absenteeism, engagement, employee turnover, grievances and workplace accidents can together indicate underlying workforce health issues.
He also said employers should not dismiss workforce health as a “soft HR topic”. Its impact extends to productivity and organisational performance, he said.
Employee health needs a longer term strategy
Carole Khalife, General Manager at S&G, Willis Towers Watson, said organisations should treat their workforce as a long term investment.
Khalife said employee health is no longer only a personal issue. She linked workforce health to productivity, presenteeism and absenteeism.
At the same time, Khalife stressed the need to protect employee confidentiality when organisations assess health needs.
She recommended using independent third parties, including brokers or insurers, instead of asking employers to collect sensitive health information directly. This approach could make employees more comfortable when sharing personal health information, she said.
Rising healthcare costs add pressure on employers
Rising healthcare costs are also strengthening the case for prevention, according to Sandi Coleman, Associate Vice President, Human Resources Gulf at Eli Lilly and Company.
Coleman said healthcare costs across the Middle East and Africa are expected to increase by around 11 per cent. She identified obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease as key contributors.
These conditions can also result in higher sick leave, lower productivity and reduced employee engagement, Coleman said.
As a result, Coleman urged HR leaders to review whether existing employee programmes address emerging workforce health needs.
She also said employers should look beyond traditional benefits budgets. HR teams can work with insurers and other partners to identify additional programmes and preventive interventions, she said.
Workforce health becomes a business consideration
The discussion points to a broader approach to employee health in UAE workplaces. Instead of treating wellbeing as a standalone initiative, organisations are being urged to connect it with workforce performance, risk management and long term organisational resilience.
For senior HR and business leaders, the discussion places workforce health within a wider organisational context. Employee health can affect attendance, productivity, engagement, retention and workplace safety, according to the speakers at the summit.
