These are the best excuses to pull off a sickie
Research conducted by AXA PPP healthcare shows that a quarter (23%) of employees say they would not tell their boss the real reason for taking a sickie in fear of being judged.
The online survey of 1,000 senior business managers, MDs, CEOs found that employers show unsympathetic attitudes towards illness.
Only 42% of the senior managers polled agree that flu is a serious enough reason for an employee to be absent from work, with 39% concurring that back pain is also sufficiently serious.
The figure falls even further for elective surgery such as a knee replacement operation or cataract surgery, with only 35% of employers accepting this as a valid reason for absence, and only 22 per cent believing that suffering from a migraine warrants time off work.
Employees are much more likely to lie to their boss about the reason for being off sick if the cause of sickness is related to mental rather than to physical health, the report found.
While around three quarters (77%) say they would tell their boss the truth if their sickness was due to a physical ailment such as back pain, flu or an accidental injury, only two in five (39%) would tell the truth if they had to call in sick due to stress, anxiety or depression.
Employees working for smaller businesses (up to 250 employees) were less likely to tell their boss that they were taking time off for stress, anxiety or depression than workers in larger sized firms.
While 44% of workers in larger sized companies said they would tell their boss if they were off due to stress, anxiety or depression, only 37% of those working in SMEs said they would do likewise.
Loading ...