SKIVERS?

In an article by Gareth Rose, printed in Scotland on Sunday august 26th employees are finding more and more imaginative illnesses for staying at home. Why? Well Professor Michael Linden, a clinical Psychologist in Berlin who has led the research claims they fear the work place, the people in it and the problems that arise there.
Should workers fear the workplace? The Stockline plastics factory mentioned in SAFETY AND OVER HEADS in one of the recent postings here in the Socialist Courier certainly justifies any apprehension in that area. In the CONSTRUTION SAFETY CAMPAIGN NEWS, the summer edition 2007 it leads with an article on the devastating increases in incidents involving cranes, deaths in Battersea and Liverpool , narrow escapes, repairs not carried out, etc. I could go on quoting from it but I’m sure you know other industries have similar problems, it’s a class thing and workers welfare will always be dismissed when profits are threatened.
The professor says, “Anxiety can lead to avoidance. Job anxiety can, therefore, be one explanation for sick leave, work absenteeism or early retirement.”
Is the professor showing sympathy for workers? Apparently not, the article is headed “Skivers suffer from phobia of workplace” I wonder if the professor could research a possible fear of profits loss, it could be the reason funds are really being provided for his research.