Millions of Germans get sick in the fall

Millions of Germans get sick in the fall
Around 1.7 million Germans are already certain that they will be ill in the fall. At least they have to get sick before they even if they are really healthy. The Institute tns emnid comes to this conclusion in a survey commissioned by the Hamburg Group Dynamics Institute Systhema and the Internet service provider Webmail.de.

1.7 million plan sick leave despite good health
In the study, tns emnid interviewed 1,000 people and then extrapolated the results for the total population in Germany. The frightening result: About 5 percent of employees or the equivalent of 1.7 million people across Germany are already planning to get sick leave during the dark months, even if they have no health problems.

Reasons for a sick leave often Mental problems and conflicts at work
The interviewees indicated various reasons for the fact that they are already planning a sick leave. Far ahead was the statement: a sick leave is less noticeable in the fall, since the staff ceiling is not as thin as in summer, where everyone is on vacation. Also, many employees take the opportunity to the boss one or wipe out their displeasure. However, some have stated that in spite of the current stable health in the fall, they are expecting psychological problems with themselves and are therefore already considering a sick leave. Moreover, for some respondents, a sick leave is just the way to avoid conflicts at work.

Experts evaluate the study results as „shocking“
The study director at tns emnid Dipl.-Psychologist Bernd Kielmann assessed the results of the survey extremely critically: „These results are staggering. On the one hand, they show how dissatisfied many of the employees are, and on the other hand, how little legal conscience some in their company have.“ In his view, the high number of people who are obviously trying to solve conflicts by circumvention patterns is particularly worrying. „It does not seem to matter to many that they ultimately cheat on their employer“, the expert explained further.

Two days to three weeks sick leave planned
The planned duration of the sick leave varies between two days and three weeks for respondents, with two percent of the 1,000 respondents planning to stay away from work for two days (684,000 people across Germany), and two percent planning a disease for about a week one percent three weeks does not want to appear at work (342,000 people across Germany). In eastern Germany, about seven percent and in western Germany about four percent of employees are expected to be sick leave.

Most often, according to the results of the tns emnid study, people between the ages of 30 and 50 want to take their leave of absence from the doctor, while younger and older workers are far less likely to plan a disease now. (fp, 05.10.2010)

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