Days lost per worker

Days lost from work are increasing

• Absences from work due to personal reasons (which include own illness or disability and other personal or family demands) have been increasing in recent years. In 2003, full-time employees holding one job only missed 9.0 days of work versus 7.3 in 1997. Several factors account for the rising trend: notably, the aging of the work force; the growing share of women in the work force, especially mothers with young children; high stress among workers; and the increasing prevalence of sick and family-related leave at the workplace.
• Women were absent from work more days than men (10.2 versus 8.1 days in 2003). The presence of preschool-aged children exerts a strong influence on work absences for personal or family responsibilities, especially for women. In such families, women employed full time lost an average of 4.5 days in 2003, compared with 4.0 days for men. Workdays missed because of illness or disability increase with age, from an average of 5.2 days for those aged 15 to 24 to 10.5 days for full-time employees aged 55 and over.
• The number of days lost for personal reasons differs by public or private sector, with almost all of the difference emanating from illness and disability absences. In 2003, full-time employees in the public sector lost more days for personal reasons (11.4 days) than those in the private sector (8.5 days). Those who belong to unions or are covered by collective agreements also missed more workdays than their non-unionized counterparts (12.8 versus 7.2 days).

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