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Good colleagues most important for working Danes

Christian Wenande
May 10th, 2016


This article is more than 8 years old.

Good bosses and high wages have less meaning

When it comes to being happy at work, the majority of Danes point to having good colleagues as the most critical factor, according to a new survey.

The survey, composed by the union HK, showed that 54 percent of working Danes believe that good colleagues was an important factor. Some 46 percent said that their work tasks were among the most important factors, while a good boss (30 percent) and a high wage (15 percent) also figured in.

“Having good colleagues means you are part of a fellowship in which you support one another socially and professionally,” said Signe Pihl-Thingvad, a professor of psychology in the work environment at the University of Southern Denmark.

“Colleagues are important for us to thrive, but also for us to dare to be innovative in order to solve our work tasks better and smarter. So it’s essential for employers to focus more on supporting the fellowship on a daily basis and create a framework that promotes it.”

READ MORE: Danish capital in 2016: Cost of not working too high

Going the extra mile
The survey revealed that 63 percent of Danes were more inclined to happily go to work in the mornings when they had a good rapport with their colleagues.

It’s also an important component when deciding whether to remain at their current job. Some 35 percent said they would stay at a job they otherwise wouldn’t like, as long as they liked their colleagues.

Additionally, 74 percent of Danes said they would go the extra mile to help a colleague, while 62 percent feel that their colleagues would do the same for them.


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A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”