Abstract

The wide range of definitions of sick leave incidence makes it difficult to compare studies. Hensing proposed a comparable data source: an index of sick leave incidence. Paid sick leave programs vary from company to company in Japan, where it is not mandated by law. Employees at the companies that were a part of the J-ECOH Study had access to paid sick leave that was more than two-thirds of their salary for at least 18 months, and they were also guaranteed job security for at least 30 months. The J-ECOH Study's sick-leave data included the subject's diagnosis, birth date, sex, and sick-leave start and end dates. The medical certificate submitted by the attending physician—a general practitioner or specialist, but not an occupational physician. when the employee applied for paid sick leave was the basis for all decisions regarding sick leave. We looked at cases of medically approved sick leave that started between April 1, 2012, and March 31, 2014 and lasted at least 30 days in this study. Subjects who applied for sick leave in March 2014 were followed up on until April 30, 2014, to see if their absence was longer than 30 days. Longterm sick leave was defined in this study as sick leave lasting at least 30 days.