Sick days have taken on a whole new meaning.
As Gen Z employees enter the workforce, paid sick leave – offered by most companies – is being used more than ever.
About 30% of employees took sick leave in the first 10 months of 2023, a 42% increase from 2019, according to HR platform Gusto, used by more than 300,000 U.S. companies.
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The average duration of sick leave has also increased by 15% since 2019, reaching an average of 15.5 hours per year.
Another HR platform, Dayforce, reported a 55% increase in sick leave over the same period, based on its user activity.
Among white-collar workers, Dayforce has seen a 42% increase in sick leave since 2019.
Sick leave increased by 42% between 2019 and 2023, according to HR platform Gusto. (iStock)
According to Gusto data, workers aged 25 to 34 were most likely to take advantage of these benefits.
“This younger generation is now the most likely to take time off work to rest and recover from illness – a sign of a generational shift in employee attitudes towards taking time off to protect their health,” Gusto reported last year.
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Jake Canull, regional director of the Top Employers Institute in New York, responded to the data in a response to Fox News Digital.
According to a new study by Top Employers, regardless of age, “employers encourage employees to take sick leave to prevent and recover from illness,” Canull said.
According to Gusto, an HR platform, Gen Z is “now the most likely to take time off work to rest and recover from illness.” (iStock)
Many companies with high levels of employee engagement have created initiatives to raise awareness about mental and emotional health, the expert noted.
These same companies are 14% more likely to discourage people from working overtime and 9% more likely to encourage them to take stress-relieving breaks during the workday, Canull added.
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Gen Z employees are less likely to work in independent, self-directed workspaces because they value human contact and collaboration, he said.
“They tend to prioritize safer and healthier workplaces over opportunities for growth and development.”
Younger American workers also prioritize their own well-being, he said, and are “very community-oriented.”
“They tend to [avoid] “They are infecting their colleagues by staying at home,” Canull said…
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