sicknessA survey has revealed that 38% of British workers have used email or text to inform their boss that they were sick and unable to work.

Furthermore, the figures from the survey of 2,000 business professionals in the UK found that one in five of those admitted they were ‘pulling a sickie’ and felt too guilty to call.

The survey, which was commissioned for the launch by Intercity Telecom of a new communications system, Orbit, which unites a worker’s desk phone, mobile and computer, focused on looking at the way workers are communicating now there is a broad range of methods of communication available.

Looking further at the results, 47% of respondents said they email someone every day that they have never actually spoken to, while 41% said they will send a text or email if they need to deliver bad news.

It also found that due to such a wide choice of communications methods being used in the modern office, 69% of UK workers have lost track of a conversation as it switches between different channels.

More than one in ten respondents stated that they would not have the courage to sack someone face-to-face, choosing the phone, email, or even text to deliver the news, while 52% would use text or email to end a business relationship, according to the study.

Commenting, Andrew Jackson, Group CEO of Intercity Telecom, said:

“Choosing the right way to communicate can make all the difference to the working relationships that we build and helps avoid being misunderstood.”