On the one hand the problem lies in there being no system in place to verify if the sick are sick. Here in Limbabwe if my wife reports sick she can expect a visit from a representative of her company's medical insurance company any time during her period of absence, even if it's one day. This isn't done at ATC Euromuddle and we too have the regular sickies who are too ill to come to work but, fortunately for them, not ill enough it seems to be seen on the golf course!
On the other hand, there's a great deal more stress attached to the job stemming not just from the controlling itself but from incompetent managers and politics. Some people have less resistance then others and genuinely feel the need to recharge the batteries from time to time by taking "time-out".