The country with the fewest official days off in Europe is forced to put up with its citizens' desire to snatch an extra day off at the expense of the most depressing Monday of the year. And as British sociologists recently found out, that Monday is the first Monday of February.
It was this Monday that the British newspaper Telegraph, which published the results of a survey of Sky Travel employees, called the "national day of the malingerer," when offices in London, Liverpool, Manchester and other largest cities of the country empty out not at all because of seasonal flu epidemics or "dead" traffic jams. Seven out of ten respondents admit that they consider it possible to pretend to be ill on Monday, thereby adding an unofficial day off to the weekend, and most potential malingerers named the first Monday of February as the most likely date for skipping work.
Psychologists did not have to conduct deep research to find an explanation for employees' tendency to skip work in early February. As the publication Lenta.ru recalls, psychologists have long established that the last ten days of January and the first week of February are one of the most depressing periods. The mood is affected by a number of depressing factors, the sum of which presses on a person with a negative force that is difficult to calculate. The euphoria of the New Year and Christmas holidays has already been forgotten, starting a new life on January 1 and giving up bad habits usually fails, the first salary does not please, and debts accumulated at the end of December must be paid off. Plus the weather at this time of year is completely rotten, and no light in the gray surroundings—at least in the form of long weekends—is expected ahead. You don't want to take a vacation at the very beginning of the year either. So employees decide to skip work. Moreover, almost everyone uses this day for passive rest, without leaving home.
"One should not think that we are simply truants; many factors must be taken into account," said Gary Cooper, professor of psychology at Lancaster University, defending his compatriots. "We have the fewest days off in the European Union, and the difference is quite significant." As the survey showed, 35% of employees consider it possible to compensate for the imperfections of their country's legislation by skipping work. Professor Cooper is also convinced that British employees are subject to greater stress because they work longer on average and in much worse conditions than their colleagues from continental Europe. "Therefore, it is not surprising that people feel the need for a pause to 'recharge their batteries,'" he told the Telegraph.
It is noteworthy that this feature of the psychology of employees and workers of Foggy Albion has long not been a secret for employers. However, every time they have to condescendingly observe what cover-up operations are developed by those who want to spend the first February Monday at home. As the sociological survey showed, only 17% of truants simply notify their bosses about an encounter with a malicious virus, a spike in blood pressure, a twisted leg, and other equally "plausible" reasons that prevented them from showing up for work at the appointed time. The rest call on their acting talents. The most perceptive prepare their bosses in advance—even on the eve of the weekend, 28% of malingerers begin to cough, sneeze, sniffle, and demonstrate other signs of an approaching cold. Apparently, in 55% of cases, the decision to skip work is spontaneous and matures on Monday morning—in this case, one has to fake the residual symptoms of illness already on the first Tuesday of February.