One in five sickness absences are "faked"
Posted by: Simon / 15.07.2010
Those of you who catch the bus or train to work may have noticed
that the headline in today's Metro free newspaper was "Britain the
sickie man of Europe". In breathless tones, the paper revealed that
in the UK, the reason for one "sickie" in five is fabricated.
What's interesting about the survey the report was based on was
that it also revealed that Britons tend to work longer hours than
most other European nation. And that over half those who "faked" a
day's sick leave would not have done so if they had the option to
work in a more flexible manner or had an entitlement to paid time
off for family matters (at the moment, such time off is
unpaid).
It might be oversimplistic to suggest that the fact that the UK
allows people to opt out of the Working Time Directive (which
limits hours to an average 48 per week) is a contributory factor.
But it appears that in the UK we don't actually work any longer
than our European counterparts (as is sometimes claimed), just at
different times!
Another interesting finding was that 15% of people say that more
stimulating work would keep them in the office.
That's not a new idea - as a quick read of any book on motivation
will tell you - but it does suggest that those employers who take a
positive, flexible approach to their staff, rather than being
prescriptive and intransigent, will get better attendance and more
productivity from them.
In the current economic climate, surely that's what employers
are looking for?
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