Champions of sick leave

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The experts consulted by The Newspaper do not know precisely for what reason the Quebec fares poorly in terms of sickness absence and disability among employees, and this, for several years already.

Boris Proulx

Wednesday, 30 August, 2017 12:17

UPDATE
Wednesday, 30 August, 2017 21:33

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OTTAWA | Quebec in the public service are absent due to illness and disability more often than those of any other province last year. This is of concern to more than one, including the government.

They work for a municipality, the province or the federal government, the Québec public servants remained in the house of 14.4 days on average in 2016 to a sick leave, according to the compilation of a pan-canadian unveiled Wednesday by the canadian taxpayers Federation.

They have missed five days longer than those of the private in the year and three days longer than the average of the officials in all of Canada. The Quebec throne at the top of this ranking for years, and his government holds the gold medal of sickness absence, with 18 days on average in 2016.

Concern

The office of the president of the treasury Board, Pierre Moreau, indicates to be “concerned” about the abstention, which shall be justified after three days.

The canadian taxpayers Federation in doubt. The pressure group believes that certain practices are bad faith, as the increase in absences on Monday and Friday.

“This is to avoid working during a storm or to give himself a long weekend, sick leave should not be used with impunity at the expense of taxpayers,” says the director for Quebec, Carl Valley.

Various hypotheses have been formulated to explain this difference in quebec.

Retirement

The Union of the public service and parastatal Quebec explained by an increase in retirements in 2016. It is still possible to clear it before his retirement from his / her bank of accumulated sick leave, what the government wants to abolish.

“What we see is an increase in the number of mental health problems in Québec “, rather believes Angelo Soares, a professor of human resources at UQAM.

The Syndicat des professionnels du government du Québec also notes ” an explosion of cases of burnout “, as a result of the austerity policies of the province according to its president, Richard Perron.

The québec private sector also composed with more absences for sickness or disability than elsewhere in Canada, a sign of labour standards, the most generous, according to the canadian Federation of independent business.

Excerpts from the compilation

Storm in march

March 2, 2016, not less than 3908 officials are not entered work in the province, on the pretext of illness. A record for the year. That day, a major blizzard was pouring precisely of the snow in great quantity in Southern Quebec, particularly affecting the regions of Montreal and Quebec.

“Vendredite” and ” lundisme “

The bureaucrats in quebec have taken their sick leave more often on Mondays and Fridays than any other day of the week in 2016, according to data compiled by the canadian taxpayers Federation (FCC). In all, 44 of the 50 days with the most absences in the year just before or just after the weekend.

65 % more than in the private

In the whole of Canada, the public sector has experienced a rate of employee absence due to illness or disability, 65 % higher than that of the private sector. In total, the 11.2 days of absence have been recorded by the government employees, compared to 6.8 days for their colleagues in the private sector. The difference is equivalent to almost a week of work.

The most sick in Quebec

The Commission of ethics in science and technology, a small body of the government of Québec, which has only six employees, is in the work place with the worst average number of days sickness taken per person in Quebec. Each of them has missed an average of the equivalent of three weeks of work, according to the calculations of the FCC rules.