The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has hit back at criticism following a Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) study which showed public sector workers take more sick days.
PCS spokesman Richard Simcox insisted that the reason staff at government-funded organisations are absent for an average of three days more than private sector employees is because of the additional stresses they are faced with.
"I think it reflects the more demanding public-facing role of the jobs that people in the public sector do. They can be very stressful jobs," he said. "The people who remain are under increased pressure with increased workloads."
Mr Simcox also claimed that a majority of public sector staff are more motivated by job satisfaction than their salary, but warned that government cuts are likely to result in less efficient services.
Earlier this week, the CIPD's latest report found that 35 per cent of employers across all sectors had observed an increase in stress-related workplace absence over the last 12 months.
Posted by Cameron Thomson
