Do you take time off work for a cold?

[BadwordMcGee]

A few recent threads have got me thinking.

COVID not withstanding, do you take time off work for every cold?

I don't. I don't take time off work unless I'm actually ill. A few sneezes and a snotty nose wouldn't have me in bed or off work. It would have to be a bad cold where I actually feel ill not just snotty and bunged up.

Some threads recently have suggested I'm selfish (not directly at me) but I work in a hospital (manager for geriatric care), have a toddler and primary school child across 3 childcare settings so probably get more of the "common" cold than average!

No, personally I don't.

I always worked with a cold, it was just how I was raised I didn't give it any thought, colds (unless making you very ill) weren't something you stayed home for. Although now I can WFH I'd stay home (and work) unless something very urgent came up at the office.

No

No, unless I feel so ill that I can’t get out of bed , I go to work.

Not every cold, no. I don't think anyone does? But the type of cold where you're going through a box of tissues a day, you're red-nosed, miserable and can't stop coughing - yes, I'd take a day or two off. No-one wants to sit next to that in an office.

I’d be in big trouble if I took time off every time I caught a common cold! (Actually not that often, once a year if that)

It depends. Some colds are a slight sniffle, others are a temperature, banging headache chest infection, exhaustion. If you have an underlying health condition, a cold on top can leave you bed bound. It really depends. Also depends on the job. It's very different being an admin person working from home, with no phone calls, to being a hospital care worker with 12 people to get up, washed, dressed, fed 3 times, bed made and transferred back to bed in a 12 hour shift.

With a cough I would wfh to avoid spreading. With a head cold - stuffy/sore throat etc - no as with good hygiene no likely to pass on (don't sit facing anyone)

Some colds no but others yes depending on how bad the cold is.

I wouldn't take time off for the sniffles and a cough, but would take time off for a bad cold. A bad cold can leave you feeling rubbish and it's not something to pass onto half the team.

I hate being in work next to people coughing and spluttering, going through boxes of tissues, clearly unwell but martyring themselves. I'm not sure whether they want attention and sympathy, or think they're proving how dedicated they are.

No I don't. However I have had this awful cough and cold, not covid according to PCR, which is worse than usual and if I wasn't off already I'd definitely consider it!

I suffer badly with colds - I get awful fevers/aches/headaches which don't shift/red raw throats were I struggle to speak and make me feel sick they get so swollen. I have suffered like this since I had glandular fever as a student. I also have recurrent sinus issues and easily get sinus infections.

If I get a cough or blocked up or a sore throat which is uncomfortable but responds to lemsip then I will go to work but generally will wfh (I can easily) to stop spreading it. If I have one of 'my' colds I can't work, I'm too sick.

I’ve got a couple of health conditions (not v serious but they are there) a cold can really knock me for 6.
I work in an office with just one other person, pre covid if one of us had a cold we would sit in separate rooms (and shout to each other!) now if either of us has a cold we have agreed the ill one will work from home to avoid spreading it. The other person in the office is the boss & he doesn’t want my germs any more than I want his.

I usually try to work through a cold but I suffer with rhinitis and colds usually end up in sinus infections. If I struggle sleeping overnight and my head is banging I'll take a day or two to sleep it off.

I'm done being a martyr to work, sometimes I have to take a day to recover over the worst.

Depends on the cold. Depends on what I've got going on at work. Like with much in life, it's a balance between the two so what I do depends on the specifics of that instance.

Bad cold + quieter time at work = time off
Mild cold + busy at work = keep going

Historically, I might have WFH when I had a really bad one, or might have taken a day off if, for example, it's meant I've barely slept, so yes, I might.

No.

No and fortunately nor do my colleagues

Yes, I do. And I’m surprised you don’t given you work in a hospital with geriatric patients,..an age group known to be vulnerable to cold viruses.

If you have a cold, you are ill.

It’s a toxic work culture that has sick people going into work. Studies have shown that if people stay home when Ill with a cold, total usage of sick leave decreases and productivity increases.

I’m self employed. I’ve not had a day off in the 15 years I’ve been self employed. Not because I’m a martyr, I’m not. But because I have to pay the mortgage. I once had surgery and was in work the next day, albeit struggling. The idea of being off with a cold is baffling, but I’m slightly jealous I must admit!

I only did if it was severe enough that I would not be able to do my job (which was a physical job, not a desk one), It was in the NHS too, so I guess people nowadays would give me shit for going in...

I work in a warehouse where the items we store go on to Amazon customers.
The people bagging these items up work with colds, snotty, sneezing, coughing etc etc.
They don't skip just cause they're ill. I don't know how long those viruses etc. live on packaging, but it's a concern..

@PlanDeRaccordement

Yes, I do. And I’m surprised you don’t given you work in a hospital with geriatric patients,..an age group known to be vulnerable to cold viruses.

If you have a cold, you are ill.

It’s a toxic work culture that has sick people going into work. Studies have shown that if people stay home when Ill with a cold, total usage of sick leave decreases and productivity increases.

I figure if I'm well enough to go out for dinner or continue all other aspects of my life but carry a pack of tissues then I don't need to be off work.

Depends on the severity surely? A cold can mean a runny nose, or a few days in bed, with fever, dizziness, nausea etc

I have in the past for a very heavy cold where I’ve felt very unwell and needed to rest. If it’s just a bunged up nose and I can otherwise function then I go into work.