Danish Care Workers Missing Nearly a Month Each Year

Gitonga Riungu

Virtual Assistant (MBA)

December 17, 2025
7:52 am

Social and healthcare workers across Denmark are calling in sick at unprecedented rates. New data show that in many municipalities, these essential caregivers are absent nearly a full month each year due to illness.

Sick Leave Soars Among Danish Care Workers

Denmark’s social and healthcare workers, known as *sosu’er*, are responsible for much of the nation’s elderly care. But according to new figures from the Confederation of Danish Employers based on data from Statistics Denmark, their average sick leave is increasing quickly.

In 2014, they missed about 15 workdays a year. By 2024, the number had climbed to nearly 19.5 days—a growth of about 30 percent. For a typical full-time worker, that equals nearly an entire work month spent away due to illness.

Big Differences Between Municipalities

Behind the national average, major local variations appear. Some municipalities have managed to lower sickness absence, while others have seen steep increases.

Workers in places like Gribskov, Bornholm, Egedal, Odsherred, Frederikshavn, Kalundborg, Jammerbugt, and Roskilde report some of the highest absence levels—more than 23 days a year on average. In contrast, municipalities such as Ishøj, Allerød, and Lemvig show lower figures at about 16 days a year.

Even so, most social and healthcare employees are absent more than other municipal workers, whose average is around 15 days. Only a few areas, including Struer and Hørsholm, have succeeded in reducing the total.

Why Sick Leave Keeps Rising

Sickness absence is not only about catching a cold or the flu. Experts from the National Research Center for the Working Environment point to other critical workplace factors. Fast-paced environments, emotional strain, and limited staffing often lead to stress-related absences.

Better leadership, personal influence, and support from colleagues, on the other hand, can reduce illness-related breaks. That explains why numbers sometimes differ even between neighboring workplaces within the same municipality.

Shortage of Care Workers Adds Pressure

The Danish care sector has faced a long-term worker shortage. Each year, more elderly citizens need assistance, but the number of trained staff continues to decline.

Because of that, when workers fall ill, the shortage becomes even worse. The more people out sick, the harder it gets for those still on duty. That constant pressure wears people down physically and mentally.

Unions representing care employees describe the situation as a vicious cycle. A smaller workforce creates more stress and more sick days, which in turn leaves even fewer hands available. Some in the field believe that public budget cuts over the past decade have made their workday increasingly tough and physically demanding.

Municipalities Try to Reverse the Trend

Municipal leaders say they take the situation seriously. The Association of Danish Municipalities (KL) points out that they are actively working to curb absenteeism by improving workplace well-being and creating healthier environments in eldercare institutions.

According to KL, many aspects influence sickness absence rates, including local leadership, staffing levels, and overall workplace culture. That is why municipalities try to find local solutions in close cooperation with managers and employees.

Efforts include more flexible scheduling, improved ergonomics, mental health programs, and closer follow-ups after illness. Whether these measures can reverse the upward trend remains to be seen, but many Danish communities are now putting extra focus on care worker well-being as a long-term investment in eldercare quality.

Health System Links and Broader Implications

As absenteeism numbers rise, Denmark’s broader healthcare discussion also gains attention. Some experts question if staff shortages will undermine public services and the balance of the national system described in Danish healthcare policies.

In the end, the issue affects both the workers and the elderly citizens relying on them daily. Lowering sick leave rates could ease pressure across the sector and strengthen trust in community care systems that Danes value deeply.