New research reveals New Zealand businesses are losing billions of dollars a year as a result of unwell workers pushing through instead of taking time out to recover.

In a new report by Umbrella Wellbeing, 'presenteeism' - when employees turn up to work while physically or mentally unwell - has been found to erode productivity and result in costly mistakes from staff.

Umbrella Wellbeing Principal Psychologist Dougal Sutherland says 'presenteeism' creates significant costs for employers - but the data is difficult to track. 

"It's very hard to count - but an estimate is that it's costing over $40 billion in lost productivity every year in New Zealand."

LISTEN ABOVE