The line graph illustrates the proportions of employees who took sick leave in five different countries from 1991 to 2001. Overall, the data for the Netherlands showed mild changes, while the figures for Sweden and France were stark differences compared to those for the UK and Germany.
Even though having experienced a subtle fluctuation, the percentage of Dutch workers who were absent due to sickness did not change much throughout the period, going from just under 5 percent in 1991 to around 5.5 percent 20 years later.
Regarding the chart, the figure for illness absence by Swedish employees increased remarkably by 2 percent whereas that for the French decreased by the approximately exact number. Moreover, the figures for both countries intertwined at around 3.1 percent halfway through the period in 1996. In contrast, the data for English and German workers absent for illnesses underwent minimal variances during the time examined, with the figure for the UK rose by 0.2 percent while that for Germany went down by 0.1 percent.