Absenteeism on rise across Europe

The amount of sick days being taken every year in Europe
is on the rise, impacting economies and governments
often grappling with poor growth and weighty debts

AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYEE SICKNESS RATE (days off work)

Norway
Finland
Portugal
France
Spain
Slovenia
Sweden
Estonia
Germany
Czech Rep.
Belgium
Iceland
Austria
Netherlands
OECD
Latvia
Denmark
Switzerland
Slovakia
Ireland
Poland
Lithuania
Italy
Luxembourg
Hungary
Greece

27.5
26.6
23.7
22.5
22.4
20.8
18.1
18.0
17.7
17.0
16.4
15.7
15.7
14.1
14.0
12.9
12.6
11.8
10.1
9.3
9.0
8.6
8.3
7.7
6.3
1.4

On average,
workers in
Norway are off
work for almost
28 days per
year – double
OECD level

Ageing workers and
greater awareness of
stress and mental health
issues have been blamed
for rise, as has fallout
from Covid-19

Source: Bloomberg Picture: Unsplash
© GRAPHIC NEWS