Calling in sick

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Calling in sick..


More British workers will call in "sick" Monday than on any other day in 2006, many opting to make their excuses by text message or by phoning in with an artistic cough or splutter, research revealed Monday.

Widespread dissatisfaction with holiday allowances combined with a post-Christmas comedown will contribute to thousands of Britons, who work some of the longest hours in Europe, staying at home to recharge their batteries.

"Early February is a very popular time for taking a 'sickie', the first bank holiday still seems a long way off, the days are gloomy and many people are still feeling the post-Christmas blues," said Cary Cooper, a professor of organizational psychology and health at Lancaster University, who headed the study.

Over 4,000 workers took part in a poll by digital channel Sky Travel which showed 78 percent of respondents were reluctant to use their holiday allowances so early in the year, preferring to wait until spring before taking official leave.

The average official holiday entitlement was 22 days a year.

The findings threw up a couple of gender-related anomalies. While men and women will take an average of nine "sickies" a year, female workers believe they could get away with taking twice as many days off than their male colleagues.

The survey also found that while a cowardly 17 percent of workers would get someone else to call in sick on their behalf, 28 percent opted for the tried and tested cough and splutter phone call.

As for regional variations workers in the northern city of Liverpool admitted to taking on average an extra 13 days a year off compared with a mere three days for Londoners.

The study offered some consolation to long-suffering bosses with five percent of those polled saying they had been caught out -- including being spotted having lunch with friends.

One respondent even admitted being forced to hobble around the office on crutches for two weeks after claiming to have been knocked down by a car.







2006 Reuters Limited