August 24 is America’s ‘sickest day of the year,’ study says
Are you feeling sick today? Get in line.
A recent study deemed Aug. 24 the “sickest day of the year,” finding that the late summer day is when Americans call in sick the most.
Researchers analyzed sick leave taken across US businesses over the last five years, as recorded by the leave management platform Flamingo.
“It’s clear from our findings there are seasonal peaks across the country. However, it’s particularly interesting to see that our sickest day of the year lies outside of the normal flu seasons, which are expected in the colder months,” David Hehenberger, founder of Flamingo, told The Post in a statement Wednesday.
He added, “Whether people are struggling with post-summer fatigue or are more susceptible to catching bugs as we head into fall, employers should brace for a potential staff shortage as we near the end of the month.”
The second “sickest” day of the year is reported to be Feb. 13. This date suspiciously aligns with Valentine’s Day and sometimes the Super Bowl.
The top 10 ‘sickest’ days of the year
- Aug. 24
- Feb. 13
- Oct. 25
- Dec. 15
- April 18
- Feb. 2
- Jan. 24
- June 26
- Dec. 12
- Sept. 5
In fact, February is the “sickest” month of the year, with the average US business seeing 10% of its staff call in sick that month.
When people did take sick leave, over half (54%) claimed to have stomach issues, with symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting.
Those ailments greatly outpaced coronavirus (25%), anxiety or stress-related conditions (9%) and musculoskeletal injuries or broken bones (6%).
After deciding to miss work, the majority of people contact their boss via text, WhatsApp or Slack (54%), a phone call (33%), or an email (12%), while 2% don’t tell their boss at all.
While many people seem to call in on Aug. 24, just over a quarter (26%) of Americans between 18 and 65 years old did not take a sick day last year, according to Statista.
Of those who do call in sick, nearly half feel bad about it, a 2022 survey found.
The poll of 2,000 US adults revealed that 41% are likely to call in sick at work the moment they feel themselves getting sick.
Gen Zers and millennials were the most likely to call in sick at work (36% and 45%, respectively), while older generations like Gen Xers and baby boomers were more willing to work through their illness (30% and 47%).
“Since the onset of the pandemic, we’ve seen a pretty significant shift when it comes to consumers taking a more proactive approach to their overall health and wellbeing,” Bruce Tetreault, senior marketing director for homeopathic drugmaker Zicam, said in December.
“Since the pandemic began, no one wants to be ‘that person’ coughing in a crowded room,” continued Tetreault. “It comes down to treating a cough, or a sneeze, or a runny nose.”
