“Staggering” levels of presenteeism in Britain have led to workers on average through working while ill and thus not working to the best of their abilities, up from 35 days in 2018, a report has found.
Workers in the UK are some of the least likely to take sick days, especially compared with other OECD and European countries, experts said. Presenteeism can prolong employees’ recovery, raise the risk of more serious sickness later and spread infectious illnesses to others – all of which slash overall productivity, the found.
Against a backdrop of UK statutory sick pay , staffing shortages and pressure from employers, three workers explain why calling in sick can be a challenge.
The waitress: ‘If don’t go in, I don’t get paid’
For those in more precarious jobs, the pressure to work through sickness is felt more keenly. As one waitress in Bristol told the Guardian: “I don’t get paid if I don’t go to work, so I don’t have any choice. I’ve never taken a day sick in two years in the job, and I wouldn’t because of it.” She said she had worked in the restaurant while running a temperature.
The part-time hospitality worker, 42, said she was entitled only to statutory sick pay – £116.75 a week, which kicks in after three days off. “With the cost of living, things are really tight. I need to work a certain number of hours to get my childcare discount,” she said, referring to the government’s tax-free childcare scheme, which relies on parents earning a certain amount.
But as well as financial pressures, the waitress said she also worked when ill so as not to let the team down on busy shifts. “There’s no cover because restaurants are on such a knife-edge. You work as a team; if people don’t turn up, you’ll struggle.”
The spread of germs is all but inevitable, as customers bring in their coughs and colds too, she noted: “I don’t want to make others sick – but nobody thinks about not coming to the restaurant if they’re ill. Even after Covid, people don’t really think about it. I’m ill now, and I know it’s come from work.”
The teacher: ‘The school purposefully makes it difficult to call in sick’
Others said they took time off when they were unwell, despite pressure to come in. In Norfolk, a 32-year-old secondary school teacher said: “If I’m sick, I’m entitled to a sick day. If I’m well enough, I’ll go in, but as a teacher it’s really hard to teach for six hours to 30 different children every hour if you don’t feel right.”
But she explained that her school – and others she has worked in – have policies that can act as roadblocks to getting time off when needed. “The process of calling in sick is made very difficult,” she said. “You must phone the school by 6.30am and provide a day’s worth of planned lessons prior to this. Frequently, the school turns off their answerphone.”
She said many other teachers avoided taking sick leave “until they end up being signed off work with exhaustion or stress-related illness”. When teachers do have to take time off, marking and lesson planning piles up for their return, she added.
“There’s an attitude among teachers of soldiering on that I think is toxic. If we all took sick days when we weren’t well, the education system would have to take stock and assess why teachers suffer higher levels of stress and stress-related illness.”
The hybrid worker: ‘The new normal means if you’re ill, you’re expected to work remotely’
For employees whose jobs allow them to work remotely, the bar for sick leave appears to have been raised in some workplaces. One hybrid worker said that whereas pre-pandemic, staff at his office were told not to work while unwell to avoid spreading germs, the option of home working has changed that.
“The new normal is now to stay at home and work if ill, again unless it’s something really serious … like a leg has fallen off,” according to a 37-year-old project manager in Birmingham, who added that employees received full pay when off sick.
Under this new system, the hybrid worker, who is expected to work from the office three days a week, added: “I’m definitely taking less sick days now. There’s been days I’ve worked from home when ill and not remembered what I’ve done. I don’t think it’s very conducive [to] a good work environment. It’s presenteeism that’s driving it.”
Workload pressures are another reason he avoids taking sick days. Even though he admitted he was less productive when unwell, the project manager said taking time off means work piling up. “We have a very lean workforce. If things stack up when I’m away from work, I will pay the price for it for after.”
Working when ill prolongs recovery time, he added – and it catches up with you. “What happens is you tend to muddle through until your annual leave – and then you’re sick during the first few days of that.”