According to several studies, the first Monday of every February is statistically the day when most workers are more likely to call in sick. Why? No one really knows for sure, but some potential reasons for this include post-holiday depression, colder and gloomier weather, and seasonal illnesses such as the flu.

It probably also has a lot to do with the low levels of natural sunlight that people have been getting all winter long. Regardless, someone in the United Kingdom decided to make this day National Sickie Day. It’s a day for people to call in sick to work, either for legitimate reasons or simply because they need a break from the day-to-day grind.

The History of National Sickie Day

After the British law firm ELAS published research showing that the first Monday in February is the most likely day for UK workers to call in sick, the first National Sickie Day was pronounced in 2011. This holiday raises awareness about calling in sick on this day and, at the same time, sort of encourages people to do it.

Some Facts About Sick Days

Since we’re on the subject of sick days, we thought it might be fun to take some time and talk about sick leave in two different countries: the United Kingdom and the United States. So we rolled up our sleeves, made ourselves a cup of hot chicken soup, and did a bit of research. The following points of information are some of the things that we learned. We hope that everyone finds these factoids as informative as we did.

• The average worker in the UK took just 5.8 days of sick leave last year.
• The United States doesn’t have any federal law mandating short-term sick leave.
• In the United Kingdom, employees need to provide their employer with proof if they’re sick for more than seven days.
• In the U.S., employers can fire at-will workers for any cause, which includes the majority of workers in the country.

Observing National Sickie Day

One of the ways this holiday is observed is by people taking a day off. Now, some people think that this means advocating for people to goof off, but what this holiday really advocates is that people take a much-needed mental health day—if they need one.

Sometimes people do need to take a day off work so they can get their proverbial (or sometimes literal) house in order. Everyone observing this holiday is also encouraged to spread the word about it to workers who might need to know about it. This can easily be done by using the hashtag #NationalSickieDay on social media.