AIBU to think employers need to accept that people get ill sometimes

[BigPinkBall]

I’ve had D&V since Thursday and if I follow the NHS advice (which I will) not to go into work until 48 hours have passed from the last incident then the earliest I could go to work would be Tuesday meaning as I’ve already had 4 days off with a chest infection in this year, that I’ll end up having to have a meeting with my manager about my absence and be told not to be ill again for the next 12 months (as if I have any say over it) or I’ll be on a PIP.

Surely policies like this just encourage people to go to work when they’re contagious?

A former colleague of mine was called in for a formal interview about his sickness absence which was caused when he was severely injured in an accident when a car careered onto the pavement and hit him. It was utterly farcical; he was asked questions about what he was going to do to try to avoid absence in the future and had to go through the charade of saying he would try not to be in the path of out-of-control vehicles. Mind you, the Managing Partner of the company concerned was a total idiot - it came as no surprise to hear that the company had collapsed subsequently.

Oh yeah
"What will you do in future to improve your sickness?"
"Er. Well I don't know how I herniated my disc but I'll try not to get cauda equina and risk paralysis?"

Yep I had that after the kidney infection “well what are you going to do to improve your sickness”
Errrrrrrrrrrrrr drink more water was what I said in the end as they wanted an answer

I was just thinking this as I've just got two children back to bed after they have been vomiting, one of them on me. I'm now bound to get it too but will be made to feel guilty for taking time off when I do . I teach and my school has back to work meetings with your line manager every time you're off ill even for a day. You'd think they'd be encouraging us not to bring the germs in to work but apparently not.

I'm ex retail and when it comes to working with the general public - I got sick a lot! Couldn't help it, people came in to the shop and spread their germs about.
I did see the gp about it once as I'd had a new bug every week for months. Apparently I was just unlucky.
Nobody else seemed to catch as many bugs as I did. What could I do to reduce my sickness? Only serve members of the public from inside a hermetically sealed box.

It's a tricky one because if you're genuinely ill you need to be off work. However some people take the piss which is why things like the Bradford tool are brought in.

One company I worked for introduced a new process so that if a sales rep was ill, instead of a quick call to the secretaries in HO they needed to call their manager. The manager would then pop round to fill in a form. Sickness plummeted as people stopped taking duvet days.

I hate those “what are you gong to do to stop,getting ill?” questions.

My answer: Stop working with children, they are germ factories. Entertaining, engaging, funny germ factories, but still.

I have never been as ill as I have in my PGCE year!

When someone is genuinely ill its very unfair. We have 2 people at work who are constantly off sick. One had over a week off because his knee hurt, hes off now because his foot hurts. What really annoys me though is they always give him overtime, and when i turn up to a shift and he's off it means I will be on my own on the till. Another woman has had weeks off sick. It let's everyone down.

thecatsarecrazy
I found in the job that I worked in were they tried to discipline me after 6 days off some staff were allowed more time off them others and some never seemed to trigger. Funny enough those staff were either mates or related to the manager. Oh yes nepotism was alive and well

Ollivander84 I know I have worked for 2 companies who used the Bradford Factor well and three that really didnt and used it as a tool to scare staff.
Those companies funny enough had a high turn over of staff whereas the ones who used it as a support tool had staff who had been there for years and years

It sounds like I have a lot of jobs but I work in a field that the best you get is a three year contact and then if hat contact gets renewed it is tendered for by others so you more then likely move.

I don’t work now due to disability but would never go back into that field

Im in my NQT year teaching so far I had a day off for a migraine where I couldn’t get off the floor, was dizzy and disorientated so unable to drive nevermind work. Then I got flu proper cannot get up flubwent into work with it ended up more unwell took 2 days off in the end. Am now terrified of getting ill again

My work has 6 cases of absense and then OH are involved.

My ds is disabled and I take parental leave by the day for appointments etc. I was told when I was then off with d and v for 1 day (started the Friday) any more absense would trigger OH (felt like a threat). Was also told I have to be treated as everyone else.

I said don't make it sound like a threat - if they need to do it - do it. Although I'm. It sure what OH can donor say as my ds won't stop being disabled and the parental leave is my right and set by government.

They've not mentioned it again!

Companies have to apply policies to everyone, otherwise it wouldn't be fair. However, I think that individual line managers can use a bit of tact when talking to individuals. I have dealt with some staff who do seem more ill on sunny days and it's really hard to differentiate between skiving and genuine self-certified sickness.

Personally, I am always ill when I have a deadline (probably because I will be run down with stress and can't fight off bugs) and so I end up struggling on with work from home. For those in face to face jobs it's harder.

So, I don't think employers are idiots, they are just being fair to all.

I've always thought this crazy - as pp have said a staff member going into work ill will either spread their illness around, or wear themselves down and be less productive for longer as they've not had a chance to recover. It's backwards logic.

It seems to be more widespread in the industries where you don't want staff members contagious as well - childcare, NHS, catering etc.

I stopped going to Dbro's place of work to eat for multiple reasons, hygiene among them - it was made very clear that if you had D&V you had a choice between going to work anyway, or a P45. The only time they were allowed to be off when ill was during inspections. (I know, not technically legal, but that doesn't actually stop many employers as only enforceable if the employee has been there 2+ years and is willing to both risk their job and take the employer to court).

He's now with a different employer, generally much better WRT absences, but still very disgruntled that he didn't give them prior notice of his recent seizure. (He gave a suitably sarcastic response).

I know some employees do take the piss, but there has to be a sensible middle ground.

If we have 2 sick periods in 2 yrs we hit a trigger point, 3 is up to the next level.

My last one I took as annual leave. As I was already at 2. (Long term for mental health, flu at Christmas)

After the m/h one I was quizzed (2nd episode as previous d&v) at one point I just said 'but I wanted to kill myself'

But all it does is make people who are ill come to work.

It can be difficult when you’re a member of a small team - there are four of us not including the team leader - as any absence impacts on other team members.

... Remember, the employer can ask you about your illness, but you don't have to disclose any medical information to them. It's confidential. Nothing they can do about it.

Agree OP. And policies like this mean it is very difficult for those with chronic illnesses to find and keep a job.

I’m so glad I no longer work in this sort of environment. I do something completely different now, with an understanding boss and the ability to work from him more or less whenever I like.

I get viruses. I just do, always have. In a bad year, like the one just gone, I’ve had two really bad flu-like viruses, one in October and one in February, which leave me barely able to get out of bed for a week and feeling weak and feeble for another month. The second then sparked labyrinthitis a few weeks later, which meant I could again barely sit up for a week, couldn’t drive for a fortnight, and am still getting occasional dizzy spells. On top of this I suffer from migraine, though I very rarely take any time off for those.

I try to live a healthy life, eat well, take vitamins, etc, and I have no idea why I’m so susceptible to infections but I just am. And if I try to push on through them I often end up making it worse and just getting another after another.

I have no idea who these perfect people are who can take no sick leave ever. I don’t think I’ve ever managed a year without at least one absence. And no. I’ve never swung the lead, I’m far too anxious about my sick r cord to do that.

We have the policy that if you have 3 separate episodes of sickness in 6 months, or 4 in a year, you have to have a meeting with the manager. Our managers are pretty understanding with most people as the majority of us don't take the piss, and it's usually just a formality to tick the box on company policy. I personally think it's a good way of ensuring people aren't just throwing sickies, but it still causes some stress for those who might be unlucky enough to have a couple of illnesses close together. All it's meant for me is that I tend to just take maybe one extra day off to make sure I'm fully recovered (having been caught out once by going back a bit early, having to go off again the next day and that counting as a second episode of absence ). A lot of it is just down to how well managers deal with their staff.

*ability to work from home

@SerenDippitty but that’s the employers fault if they’re not planning for the possibility that someone could be off sick, it’s not fair to put people in the position of feeling they can’t be off or they’ll be letting their colleagues down.

@sierra259 when I had the chest infection earlier this year I could have gone back after 3 days (I only work 3 days a week so it was actually 7 days) but I did think I’d better take the extra day just to make sure because I didn’t want it to turn into 2 occasions.

@cuckoo it’s not really being fair to all to treat someone who’s had a good record then unfortunately had 2 contagious illnesses within a few months the same as someone who’s “sick” on a Friday every other week.

I’ve got a chronic condition and am immuno-comprised. Have been for past 40 years. In the early days I missed out on jobs when prospective employers found out. It got better with DDA legislation for a time, but in recent years (since the financial crash) I’ve been aware of a much harder line from employers in general.

I’m very conscious of managing my condition and am now fortunate to have a work from home job and a decent manager. I know he deflects a lot of crap from HR about me and gives me a lot of flexibility around my hours.

Previous managers in other recent jobs were not so helpful. And the reason I left the companies. One of them was in the healthcare sector looking after the elderly and they only allowed 3 days per rolling 12 month period paid leave.

I had this problem last year at my work and HR have pulled me up on it this year. I was off sick last year several times due to illness caused by the stress of my job. I had reported my stress to my manager, asked for help and got none. Got ignored completely.