The British Museum has a tablet that details why 40 employees in ancient Egypt missed work 3,270 years ago?
This limestone “ostracon” is a register of attendance from “Year 40 of Ramses II” that offers a fascinating glimpse into work-life balance in Thebes in 1250 BC.
Here are three common reasons for employee absences, translated directly from the tablet:
• “Brewing beer”
• “His wife/daughter was bleeding” (i.e., menstruating).
• “The scorpion bit him”