When I first joined EK, I heard pilots talking about going sick so they could attend things such as school events with their children, birthdays etc. My opinion then was that they were very selfish and crapping on their colleagues.
Whilst I still think that it is crapping on your colleagues, I am much more sympathetic to those that do manage their roster by going sick. And I also understand the reluctance by many to call sick fatigued.
I have no idea how much lower we can go but I do feel that we are now in the end game.