No, this is not an actual illness but it is highly contagious and seems to have infected ever increasing numbers of the population, the symptoms of which include an explosion of flags, mainly on vehicles but also on some buildings!
Further symptoms include more and more discussions on various aspects of the game and the fitness or otherwise of those selected to play in the England team.
A further symptom will be, once the tournament has started, a rash of absenteeism in the workplace.
How should employers treat employees, who unaccountably telephone that they are suffering from some illness or another, when coincidentally their team happen to be playing a match on the day in question?
The answer is that employers should be vigilant at all times, but particularly when there are added distractions like the World Cup or Wimbledon, which is also coming up.
Now is a good time to remind employees of the rules regarding sickness absence and also that absenteeism will not be tolerated, except in cases of genuine illness and that if it is discovered that someone feigning illness has actually taken a day off to watch a football match, then disciplinary action will follow.
Employers may be proactive and agree with their employees time off to watch matches, but on a reciprocal basis, so that any time off given to watch a football match, will be made up by additional work to compensate for the time given.
Clearly, it is not practical, particularly if England do well in the tournament, to allow everybody a day off as part of their holiday entitlement, but some accommodation in recognition of the interest in the game, may well bear dividends in terms of increased productivity after the World Cup has concluded.
In general, employers should always be vigilant in terms of absence and to have a rigid absence control procedure in place.
