They’re staying home! Absence rates rise after England’s historic 2-0 win

The country woke up with a collective hangover today after England’s historic 2-0 win over Germany in the Euro’s.

While many employers planned for employees to watch the match at work or leave early ahead of the 5pm kickoff, it seems few were anticipating the impact that such an historic win would have. Some optimistic employees had planned ahead, with data showing a 29% increase in the number of people booking today off as annual leave compared to last month.

When the final whistle blew at Wembley stadium, and 55 years of hurt were finally over, the party got into full swing – and businesses are seeing the after-effects today.

BrightHR statistics show an increase of 17% in sickness absence rates today (calls received between 00:01-10:35 from 250,000 employees measured), compared to the same time last week.

England’s quarter final match against the Ukraine falls on a weekend so is likely to be of less concern to employers, but should they advance to the semi finals these matches are due to be played on Tuesday 6th or Wednesday 7th July, so its important for employees looking to celebrate to plan accordingly and not just wait until the next day to call in sick.

Alan Price is CEO at BrightHR. He says: “It will likely be disappointing for employers to see the high rate of absences due to the England v Germany match, especially if they had made provisions to allow staff to watch it in the office. It will be crucial, going forward, that employers implement absence management policies that include how line managers can tackle the issue and making the organisation’s position clear to staff.

“England’s quarter final match against the Ukraine falls on a weekend so is likely to be of less concern to employers, but should they advance to the semi-finals these matches are due to be played on Tuesday 6th or Wednesday 7th July, so it’s important for football loving employees to plan accordingly and not just wait until the next day to call in sick.

“Although it would be inappropriate to jump straight to disciplinary action without clear evidence, a well-structured policy will allow organisations to take disciplinary action where the level of absence reaches an agreed upon trigger point. In these circumstances, warnings may be issued and the employee may be placed on an improvement plan, if necessary.”