‘National sickie day’ loses businesses £27m

04/02/2008

Businesses could lose £27m today, as thousands of workers take a day off on ‘national sickie day’.

A combination of bad weather, post-Christmas blues and a long wait for the summer holidays mean that an estimated 310,000 will take a day off on the first Monday of February, according to a survey by personnel software company Employersafe.

However, Peter Mooney, a spokesman for the company, said it was important for employers to acknowledge that many people will be off work with genuine ailments, such as cold and flu.

“That is why it is important to monitor staff absenteeism to work out who is genuine and who is faking it,” he added.

The cost of taking a day off could be particularly high for small business owners, who could lose more than £500 a day.

According to a survey by Olbas Powerflu, 57% of self-employed workers say they can’t afford to take time off work when they are ill, with one in three adding that they won’t get paid if they don’t turn up.

Around 22% of employers worry about setting a bad example to their employees, with nearly a quarter adding that they fear their staff would take advantage if they weren’t around.

More than a third said the benefit of paid sick leave could tempt them to go back to working for someone else.

Hilary Lynn, spokesperson for cold cure Olbas, said: “It’s difficult for tradesmen or anyone self-employed to down tools when suffering from heavy colds of flu.”