OTTAWA - The government wants to use the next round of contract talks to crack down on public workers abusing sick days.
Treasury Board President Tony Clement was responding to a Canadian Federation of Independent Business study that found federal employees are costing taxpayers $3.5 billion annually by calling in sick or taking personal days.
Clement said Tuesday it was "absolutely nonsense" employees are stressed out because of what unions say are increased workloads due to downsizing under the Tories.
The CFIB said federal workers averaged 15.2 sick, disability and personal days. The public sector average is 12.9 days, compared to 8.2 days in the private sector.
