Are we really surprised? Government Workers Absent More Than Others Government workers at all levels are significantly more likely to be absent from their jobs for personal reasons or illness than private-sector workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Each month the Census Bureaus Current Population Survey compiles data from 60,000 households, including information on time spent on and off the job. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) uses this data to publish employment statistics. The survey asks questions in reference to the week that includes the 12th day of the month. The BLS states: When an employed wage and salary worker who usually works 35 hours per week is reported as having worked fewer than 35 hours during the survey reference week (including those with jobs who worked zero hours), a question is asked as to why he or she worked fewer than 35 hours. Workers whose reasons for missing work include their own illness or other personal reasons (such as family responsibilities or transportation problems) are counted as having had an absence. Employees who worked fewer than 35 hours because of vacation, holiday, labor-management dispute, or bad weather that results in an employer temporarily curtailing business activities are not counted as having an absence. In 2012, 4.1 percent of federal government employees reported an absence from work in the typical reference week, as did 4.4 percent of state workers and 3.7 percent of local government employees. For government workers at all levels, the average was 4 percent, compared to just 2.9 percent for private-sector employees. So a government worker was 38 percent more likely to be absent from work than a private-sector worker. Among all the private-sector occupations or industries listed by the BLS, only two had an absence rate of 4 percent or more — Healthcare support occupations (4.6 percent), and Community and social service occupations (4 percent). The occupations with the lowest absence rate in 2012 were Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (1.9 percent), and Wholesale trade (2 percent).
Posted on: Sun, 03 Nov 2013 22:00:33 +0000