To think your work should leave you alone when you're ill?

Just out of interest can anyone top my Dad’s record? 46 years without a single day off sick! He did have one dentist appointment.

He’s late 80s now and still super fit and healthy.

Our policy is more than three sickness in two years would trigger a review.
I had eleven years without a day off sick and then four incide ts in two years. Two was chest infections/severe colds eleven months a part, one was off with concussion after being knocked off my bike and the final one was a minor operation.

It didn't result in a warning, just standard questions such as did I need any additional support at work, did I need help from occupational health, that kind of thing. There was information on other health services the employer offers. It was supportive. I think it would be different if they noticed a pattern of every Friday and Monday off or only being sick at half term or something
It's been over three years since this happened and I haven't been off sick since.

I've been off more than 3 days since January let alone in a year 😂 although I do have really shitty luck and pick up everything the kids bring home.
I'm currently awake with d&v but I'm due in work at 3pm 😖😖

I would consider that a lot. In my current job, which I've been in for 11 years, I've only needed time off for one bout of illness - Covid.

People should be careful what they wish for Someone with norovirus went into my local Boots pharmacy last week. He shat himself while sitting in the waiting area It went all over the chair and floor.

I actually agree with you OP. It’s not really about whether 3 instances of sick leave is a lot and whether a conversation about sick leave use is justified. The fact is, the conversation will wait until you return to work.

Obviously if someone is off for an extended period, say a month or so, then the manager might need to contact them at some point while they are off. But for a couple of days, no.

I remember once when I had flu, and my manager called me every bloody day. I had left work early so the first day of sick leave was really a half day, then I was off the next, and then the morning after that I got a call like “why aren’t you back at work yet? I really can’t understand why you’re not back yet!” Um, I have flu Sharon. Most people don’t just bounce back from flu after a day and a half.

Most companies the trigger is 3 or more absences in a rolling year or 10 days or more in 12 months.

The manager could be referring to this. However, I don't think they would automatically think you lying abt the absences but they do need to treat everyone the same.

Couldn't agree more with this. Sorry, but most employers do not give a toss about your wellness. So stop running yourself into the ground for someone who would have your position filled in a week if something happened to you.

I worked in a workplace of the same 6 people for about 10 years.i could count on one hand the days off sick 3 of us had, one person was never ill but once had time off for a broken bone and the other 2 had probably 3-4 times off sick a year (one of them had health anxiety)

But a lot is luck (like with attendance records at school!) My son is generally healthy, one year he had 100% attendance but had been ill at least twice in the school holidays that year.

He is actually currently off school with D and V. The school dont have a 48 hours policy , but I usually keep my kids at home at least 1 day after anyway.

Three times in a year is a lot. I've been in my job seven years and have had one sick day in that time. Is work making you ill?

Oh come on. Nobody should be going into work with a stomach bug, no matter what their job is (unless they work alone or from home). A few days off is completely normal in this case. Who wants to catch V and D from their colleague?

Same where I worked, I had a lady frequently ringing in sick, so me and a colleague did a home visit ( I. The contract that we could) she was a DV victim and was locked in whilst her oh was at work. We called the police and got her to a refuge.

Back in the 80s a colleague in a different department phoned in sick on the Monday morning. Things were different then, no-one really chased these things up. The following Monday she didn't come in, her boss tried calling her but got no answer so he and another colleague went round to her house. He ended up breaking in and she was dead. It was thought she had probably died about 3 or 4 days earlier.

That company did change it's policy at that point and you couldn't just phone in on day one then drop off the radar.

Completely agree, when you've lived in other countries where they actually want you to stay home so you don't infect everyone, this culture of not being allowed to be sick is so frustrating.
Especially post covid when so many people have weakened immune systems.

Some of the replies here make me very sad. People get sick. Stop drinking the company kool aid and ensure you are treated like a human being and not a robot. The competitive wellness’ is alarming! I presume those who haven’t had a day off in the last 40years have never experienced a significant dose of flu, covid or norovirus.

3 times in a year is not rare!
That would be a trigger point for my job,

Yes you should be left alone when sick depending on the illness. I was hospitalised for severe anaemia requiring blood transfusions, work left me alone. When I was off with a chest infection I stayed in touch, that's been over a 5 year period though. I get unwell but I still mange to get myself into work.

I am not sure whether being ill three times is that rare or not - it seems a bit high, but not necessarily excessive, but I do think it's a bit odd to regularly go off for days at a time. Admittedly, I don't know what you do and if you work as a waitress in a cafe or something which I'm sure that's different to if you're an office worker, but I think most employers would usually expect people to call in planning to take just 1 day off with no immediate assmption of multiple days off without a very specific reason? I was not well last week but it never occurred to me that I would definitely be off for days on end.

Just check your absence policy and procedures. We must ring in and speak to line manager preferably before 8am, exceptions being if in hospital or at doctors. If line manager is in a mater shift try will call you when they get in. Absence on Monday , a weekend or before or after a Bank Holiday is weighted heavier (Bradford Factor) and three absences us a 13 month period would be a disciplinary heating, a fourth could be dismissal. Depending on factors and reasons for absence. Any protected characteristics are excluded.

Sickness monitoring can be useful in large organisations. I’ve worked on a centralised contract with unrealistic targets. Managers reporting levels of sickness leave or for others high stress and people leaving but just about managing meant the target was (eventually) lowered.

What job do you do OP?
3 periods in 12 months would be a trigger in my work place too. I work in a school and so is lots of bugs around all the time.
Also think 3 periods of sickness in 12 months is a lot more than average and definitely not rare.

on the call back thing we have to ring reception in the morning each day of absence who pass on to manager. We may get a call back depending on what the illness to check on any outstanding work and see how we are. That does depend on the illness. If D&V likely to be left alone as long as have said there is no work to be picked up.

THIS!!!!!!!!!!

Totally agree, think people are getting hung up on the wrong thing.

Yes 3 times in 12 months at my work would be considered a lot and would warrant an informal chat before triggering any formal procedures.

But no manager would ever ring you in the middle of the day whilst you were off sick, as long as you had called in each morning then they'd leave you alone until you came back. Then do a return to work chat.

Have a halo. I'm guessing you're the one everyone else catches their colds from.

Blimey, some of these replies.

OP says she followed her workplace's policy, why are people ignoring that? Not everybody has to ring up every morning they're ill. If she followed it, then she's right, her manager shouldn't be harassing her when she's ill.

And if some of you think 3 episodes of illness in a year is excessive, all I can say is that some of us have no choice in the matter. And if employers are kicking off about 3 sickness absences a year, they're shit employers. (Including yours by the sounds of it @PeachBlossom1234 - it's appalling you had to work through chemo.)

At this rate employers will be pushing people into higher rates of sickness absence, making people sicker than they already are, and eventually forcing them out of jobs altogether if they don't wake up and realise they are employing people not robots. At which point they'll be labelled scroungers for not working. Not that a bad employer would care, of course - they'd just replace them and proceed to treat the new lot just as badly, potentially impairing their health as well.

This being Mumsnet, I'm quite sure this post is going to be laughed at and I couldn't care less. Some people on here really do inhabit very narrow little worlds.