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1 in 5 employee in Singapore goes on medical leave to avoid work

Local recruitment company, JobsCentral, has revealed some interesting findings about how workers in Singapore fake their medical leave.

The summary data from an inline survey which it conducted shows the following:

- 18.3% of Singapore workers feign illness to avoid work.

- Only 12.3% of employers carry out checks on their employees who were absent from work due to illness.

- 82.7% of employers reply on medical certificates to verify their employees' sickness claims.

- The highest number of sick leave is reported in December (20.2%), followed by February (13.1%), January (12.1%) and June (11.7%).

- Workers with a gross monthly salary of over S$5,000 are less likely to go on bogus sick leave compared to those who earn a lower wage.

The recent incident of 88 SMRT bus drivers going on medical leave as a group on the same day has raised the issue about medical certificates and how easily and readily employers accept them.

If there is anyone who goes on medical leave very often in your company, it may be necessary for you to look closely into the matter.