Study reveals the most bizarre excuses employees use for taking a sick day…

A recent study completed by Beneden Health, a leading provider of healthcare and well-being services in the
UK has revealed that six in ten bosses don’t believe their employees’ excuses when they call in sick.

Some of the more bizarre excuses bosses heard from employees calling in sick included:

• Days off to tend for a sick dog
• 
  
• Dropping a can of beans on their big toe
• 
  
• Mourning the death of their hamster
• 
  
• The dog ate their shoes 

The study of 1,000 bosses and 1,000 employees found certain excuses stand up better than others –vomiting bugs, viruses and abdominal pains are more likely to be believed.

Gill Landon, HR & Development Director at Benenden Health said: “In a tough economy, managing sickness absence becomes vital for businesses, but employers are clearly suspicious about days taken off for illness – perhaps not surprising given the varied excuses presented for absence. This is not helped by the fact that for more than a fifth of the sick days taken, workers admitted they could have actually made it into work”.

“High levels of sickness absence can have a huge negative impact on businesses – both from a financial perspective and on the effect it has on staff who bear the extra workload. This is naturally causing employers to be more alert to spotting staff who are not genuinely ill, using methods such as checking their social media profiles to catch them out if they are lying or rigorously questioning the reasons they give for their absence.

“However, employers should also show caution – we can see from the findings that being stressed or overworked can result in increased numbers of sick days being taken. Employers need to play their part by ensuring that the wellbeing of staff is dealt with through an effective health and wellbeing policy in the workplace.”

Gill Landon added: “Clearly sickness absence in the workplace, whether through genuine illness or otherwise, does have a significant impact on businesses and so it is important for employers to have a robust procedure for managing absence.

“If an organisation has an effective approach to employee health and wellbeing, this can result in healthier workers who are more productive and who will have lower levels of sickness absence. By adopting a caring approach to their employees’ health and having a proper scheme in place, employers can proactively assist in reducing sickness absence in their workplace.”

25 OF THE MOST BIZARRE EXCUSES FOR SICK DAYS TOLD TO BOSSES

1. A can of baked beans landed on my big toe
2. I was swimming too fast and smacked my head on the poolside
3. I’ve been bitten by an insect
4. My car handbrake broke and it rolled down the hill into a lamppost
5. My dog has had a big fright and I don’t want to leave him
6. My hamster has died
7. I’ve injured myself during sex
8. I slipped on a coin
9. I’ve had a sleepless night
10. My mum has died (this was the second time the person used this excuse)
11. I am hallucinating
12. I am stuck in my house because the door’s broken
13. My new girlfriend bit me in a delicate place
14. I burned my hand on the toaster
15. The dog ate my shoes
16. My fish is sick
17. I swallowed white spirit
18. My toe is trapped in the bath tap
19. I’m in A&E as I got a clothes peg stuck on my tongue
20. I drank too much and fell asleep on someone’s floor – I don’t know where I am
21. My trousers split on the way to work
22. I’m using a new contact lens solution and my eyes are watering
23. I have a blocked nose
24. I’ve had a hair dye disaster
25. I’ve got a sore finger

Full news story published on the 25th April 2013 by Beneden Health

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