Nearly 40 per cent of Canadians went to their workplace sick during the COVID-19 pandemic, poll suggests

Almost 40 per cent of Canadians went to work sick at least once during the pandemic, according to a new poll that examines workplace culture and the importance of paid sick days.

Twenty per cent of respondents said they rarely went into work sick in the past year, 19 per cent reported they went in several times, and 59 per cent said they never went to work while ill. The results did not include those working from home due to COVID-19 precautions.

The survey, conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research in partnership with the Future Skills Centre and the Diversity Institute at Ryerson University, asked 5,913 Canadians what they would do, both before and during the pandemic, if they were sick on a workday. It also asked why they would go to work sick and found that workplace culture is a more common determinant than lack of access to sick days.

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