This year, the public holiday falls on a Thursday, creating a convenient opportunity for employees, whether genuinely unwell or opportunistic, to bridge the gap between the public holiday and the weekend with a well-timed sick day.
A sick certificate data analysis predicts Friday will be the year’s biggest sick day. Last year, the day before the 2023 public holiday, which fell on a Tuesday, saw a 53 percent increase in sickies.
After paying tribute to the Australian and New Zealand soldiers who served and died in war and conflict, many Australians will undoubtedly head to the RSL club or pub for a game, or many, of two-up. This is where they are most likely to catch their affliction, according to Avinash Vazirani, co-founder of the health assessment and sick leave certificate app Sicky.
“Quite often it’s because our patients have over indulged or have interacted with infectious people while socialising,” he said. “It’s a common trend we see after every public holiday in the middle of the week, closely followed by the weekend.”
The most common excuse, according to the 102,000 consultations using the app since its launch in 2020, is cold and flu (33 percent). Gastro is the next most common reason for sick leave, with 19 percent of employees calling up sick with the stomach bug. That excuse is followed by COVID (19 percent), migraines, (nine percent) and stress-related insomnia (seven percent).
On a typical working week, the data suggested that almost a quarter of all sick days are taken on Mondays, and another quarter are taken on Fridays. The other half of all sick days are spread evenly across the remaining weekdays. It also noted a 233 percent spike in mental health days over the past three years, a rise that is linked to an increasing prioritization of health and well-being following the pandemic.
The sick certificate app, founded by pharmacists, provides patients with virtual consultations with healthcare professionals. However, they can only issue sick leave certificates within the scope of their practice. Approximately 13 percent of users on the app are referred onward to another healthcare practitioner, such as a doctor, and are not issued a certificate using the app alone.
“It’s important Australians are mindful of their respective workplace obligations and well versed in what evidence they are required to provide in the instance of taking sick or personal leave,” Vazirani said.
