Melbourne: India is the second worst country
in the world when it comes to workers availing of sick leaves
-- even when they are not ill, a survey has revealed.
The survey, conducted across Australia, China, France,
the UK, India, Mexico and the US, found the booming economy of
China taking first place at 71 per cent, followed by India at
62 per cent, and then Australia at 58 per cent.
Feeling stressed was the number one cause for sickies,
according to the survey by Australian workforce managers
Kronos which suggested that managers needed to recognise the
causes of stress and then find practical solutions, like
flexible working hours.
The option of flexible working hours, choice to take
unpaid leave if required, and the ability to work from home
were the three most desired attributes when it comes to what
employers can offer their staff in order to help them manage
work/life balance, reduce stress and address number of sickies
taken, Kronos general manager Peter Harte said.
The survey said a third of people chuck a sickie to
take care of a sick child or family member, while 10 per cent
cited a heavy workload as the motivator, the `Courier Mail`
newspaper reported.
Australians were more likely to chuck a sickie than
those in the United States (52 per cent), United Kingdom (43
per cent), Mexico (38 per cent) and France (16 per cent), the
poll found.
Almost two-thirds of Aussie workers surveyed felt their
employers should introduce flexible working hours in order to
reduce the number of sickies that are taken.
PTI
