Staff resent 'sickie colleagues'

Industry loses about £13bn every year as a result of sickness

Nine out of 10 NI employees have admitted feeling resentment against colleagues who have phoned in sick, a survey has suggested.

The research, carried out for the BBC, found staff were mainly annoyed because it added to their workloads.

It found 92% of women became annoyed, compared to 86% of men.

Nigel Smyth, director of employers' body the CBI, said he was not surprised but it was important to separate the genuine cases from the rest.

According to the CBI, industry loses about £13bn every year as a result of sickness absence on roughly 30 million working days.

The poll was carried out by GFK/NOP for the BBC to promote its Big Challenge Health Works Awards.

MAIN CAUSES OF ABSENCE Minor illness Back pain Musculo-skeletal problems Stress Drink or drug related conditions Recurring medical problems Home/family responsibilities Reasons not related to genuine ill-health Work related injuries Mental ill-health Injuries/accidents Acute medical conditions

The survey also suggested company cars had fallen out of favour and a company pension scheme was regarded by 56% of NI respondents as the most important benefit.

Researchers said 18% had opted for a private healthcare plan and 16% in Northern Ireland said they would opt for a car above all.

More than 60% of NI employees said alcohol played too big a role in business and could have a negative impact on staff.

The survey suggested people who are obese suffer discrimination at work.

Asked if they thought an employer would employ a normal weight person or an obese person where two candidates in an interview are otherwise equally matched, almost no-one said they would employ the obese candidate and 83% opted for the normal weight candidate.

Only 16% said weight would not matter in choosing candidates for a job, with almost two-thirds believing people who were obese damaged their career prospects.

The BBC launched the Health Works Awards earlier this year to recognise employers who make health promotion important in the workplace and to reward individuals who encourage their colleagues to lead healthier lives.