When you’re sick, you’re sick! Elaine Varelas advises staying home for everyone’s sake
Getting sick is still in season. Many employees use sick time when they're fighting a cold, but many others feel that carrying on makes them seem like more dedicated employees. The truth is that they're putting other people at risk, even if they may not realize it. Elaine Varelas expands on the reasons why you should use your sick time when you're sick.
Q: Not everyone, but many people in my office brag about never missing a day of work – even when they’re sick. They have sick time stockpiled, which makes me worry that I look like a slacker when I use mine. Not only do I not want them getting me sick, I also don’t want to get anyone else sick. And when I’m sick I want to rest! Is there a way to tell them not to come in? Or should I be the one changing my behavior?A:
If you’re sick, stay home. If you’re not sick, don’t use a sick day. Those are the easy rules that people should be really focused on in terms of working in locations where contagious illness are easily shared with others.
Most managers recognize that people do get sick or their kids get sick and there’s not always a backup, so using sick time is encouraged. Using sick time is even more important to do when you threaten the health of other people. Many offices have employees with immunodeficiency for many health reasons which they may not have disclosed to you, and these people really can’t be afford to be around you, so don’t put them in that situation. There are also people who don’t want to take your germs home to their children or their elderly parents. Coming to work sick is not a badge of courage. It’s inconsiderate, and it puts people at risk.
If they do come in, make sure you don’t shake their hands. Ensure you use a hand disinfectant, phone disinfectant, and table disinfectant, and encourage them to do the same to minimize the risks to everyone else in the organization. Managers really need to encourage employees to use sick time in the right ways, particularly now when working remotely is so effective. And if someone’s really ill, then they need to rest, get better, and come back to work when they’re healthy.
If your organization will be understaffed due to customer-facing employees calling in sick, managers need to ask themselves, what’s better? Contagious employees who are coughing with runny noses or worse while handling customers, and even coughing and sniffling into the phone with a customer? Or rather, calling in a temp or asking someone else to work extra hours to cover for someone who should not be in front of customers at that time?
These are all a good rationale for keep an employee with a cold out of the workplace, but there are other valid causes than that to use your sick time. Migraines, stomach viruses, chronic pain, and other illnesses that you can’t necessarily “see” are all perfectly valid reasons some people can’t come to work, and also fall under an appropriate use of sick time.
For those of you who are unpaid for sick time, continue to talk to your managers. Perhaps you can come up with flexible schedules, or ways to work remotely. At the very least, you want to make sure you’re communicating with each other on how to best support one another. And those of you who are healthy, take a personal day, and don’t abuse the paid sick day privilege.
It’s not your job to tell someone not to come in when you’re sick. And no, you shouldn’t change your behavior, but feel free to have a conversation with Human Resources or your manager about the fact that someone is significantly sick enough to be spreading germs. If you’re really concerned about getting sick, carry disinfectants and wash your hands regularly, don’t go into their office, and meet in a conference room or another common area. Otherwise, don’t worry about their bragging, and when you’re sick, you’re sick.
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