Absence due to sickness virtually unchanged

In 2001, absence due to sickness in all public sectors remained virtually the same, with the exception of the Ministry of Defence, where it fell by 0.6 percent. In the private sector, absence due to sickness was also stable, at 5.4 percent.

Absence highest in police force

Absence due to sickness is highest in the police force.

In 2001, an average of one in every ten policemen fell ill. Municipalities came second, whereas the judiciary had the lowest score, i.e. one in every twenty employees.

Absence due to sickness by public sector

Highest score among teachers and judges

The average number of days of absence increased in 2001 and is highest among teachers in primary and secondary education and in the judiciary. They averaged 24 days. Absence in education as a whole, however, fell from 7.7 percent in 2000 to 7.6 percent in 2001.

Length of absence in the public sector

Female public servants more often ill

There is a noticeable difference between men and women. On average female public servants are longer and more often ill than their male counterparts. In most public sectors absence among women is 1,5 times as high as among men. The difference is less conspicuous in primary and secondary education.

Absence due to sickness in the public sector, by sex, 2001

Older public servants more often ill

In general, older public servants are more often ill than their younger colleagues. This is because, although they are less frequently ill than their younger colleagues, older public servants stay at home longer.

John Kartopawiro