Figure 1

Workplace absenteeism attributed to influenza: seasonal, 1997/98-2008/09, and pandemic 2009. Influenza seasons differed by predominant subtype (H1N1 vs H3N2), the co-circulation of influenza B strains and the number of antigenic strains. The pandemic waves were more remarkable for the number of hours lost than the number of employees taking time off work. Estimates of the seasonal absenteeism rate attributable to influenza and proportion of hours lost due to influenza infection were based on separate models, though a strong association between these estimates is evident.