Top tips for tackling the ‘sickie culture’

The growing use of fake sick notes is making it harder to police sickness absence. A government report issued earlier this year highlighted the seriousness of the UK’s “sickie culture”, assessing the cost of work-related ill-health to the economy at more than £100 billion a year.

Although GPs are often blamed for being too ready to write sick notes, forgeries now seem to present an even bigger problem. A quick search on the internet reveals that employees can easily obtain replica sickness certificates to fill in themselves. Several websites claim to sell sick notes for “novelty purposes only”, with suggested uses including “getting more holidays from your employer” or obtaining an “extension to a deadline”.