Lost time rates same or lower for most groups
The average Canadian worker lost 9.1 days of work last year due to illness and personal reasons. That is less than any year since 2002, but it is still more than the 8.0 days recorded in 2000. As a percentage of the working year, time lost was 3.6 per cent, up from 3.2 per cent in 2000.
Figures released by Statistics Canada for 2010 show that the highest rate of absenteeism came in 1999 with we were away from work for 9.9 days or 4.0 per cent of the time.
Absenteeism is defined as time away from work due to illness or disability, or personal or family responsibilities. The StatsCan report mentions several causes for changes in rates of absenteeism: working conditions, availability of social services, family circumstances and physical health.
At almost all ages, women are absent more often than men, On average in 2010, women missed 11.0 days (8.9 for illness and 2.1 for personal reasons) against 7.6 for men (6.2 illness and 1.4 personal). The rates for women have also increased faster since 2000 when they lost 9.4 days, as opposed to 7.0 for men.
Age is also a factor, with workers between 55 and 64 losing 12.8 days per year and those 15 to 19, only 5.9.
On average, full-time employees with children are absent the same number of days, 9.1, as those without. However, at 13.8 days, mothers of preschool children lose the most time, 4.8 days of that for personal and family responsibility.
Unionization has some effect, with members absent 12.9 days (10.9 illness and 2.0 personal) versus 7.3 days for non-union (5.7 illness and 1.6 personal).
