To think staff shouldn't be in when this unwell?

[Mileymikey]

At my child's nursery?

Dropped my 3yo daughter off this morning after a 2 week holiday and her nursery worker is so unwell it's really strikingly obvious.

She looked hot, could barely get her voice out, bunged up snotty nose, about to drop off to sleep almost, no exaggeration she looked like she was about to fall down.

I didn't know what to do so have left DD there like normal but AIBU thinking people shouldn't be in work like this?

To clarify I'm not blaming her as I know there could be a number of reasons she's felt she needs to come in but surely it's wrong to have staff in this unwell?

I agree, it’s a failure of management that she feels she has to come in. I’d assume they're not paid fully for sick days, or are guilted into coming in sick, neither of which are good and I’d ask management about it

Yes it's wrong to come in like that. Looking after vulnerable children and giving it to other staff. etc.

Most of the nurseries I've worked in in the last 20 years have no/little sick pay. Staff are paid little and want to eat and sleep in a house. It's inevitable.

Yes it’s wrong because it spreads germs BUT they don’t get paid most of the time - my sister has had times where she’s been up A&E not being able to breathe all night and straight into work the same morning (she has really bad flare ups when unwell) because she couldn’t afford to stay home

Yanbu

Nursery staff are treated like crap. I only lasted 18 months as a nursery nurse. The management in nurseries are abysmal. The staff won’t be paid very well.

Probably because no work no pay. That's the system and culture that needs to be blamed, not the workers who can't afford time off

Precisely.

They shouldn't but a lot of them won't get paid sick days so feel they have to come in.

I didn’t get paid for not coming when working in a nursery and not only that, was made to feel like absolute shit about failing to fulfil my role if unwell, lots of messages about having to scramble bank staff etc.

i feel really sorry for her.

I'm a supply worker at a nursery but my agency says we have to go in if sick otherwise we will be taken off the books. Managers of these places do not care about staff wellbeing that's for sure. I feel very sorry for your daughters nursery worker. She will have a very long and gruelling day ahead of her feeling like absolute rubbish. Most likely, she will make herself even more unwell. :(

We don’t get paid for sick days at my nursery, not unless you have a sick line which you just can’t get for only the first week.

It may sound pathetic but a day’s wage can make or break me. It can be the difference between being able to afford a few treats for the kids in the grocery shop and scraping to pay the last bill. If you don’t want sick nursery workers looking after your child campaign for better treatment for these people. Minimum wage, shit hours, no sick pay, no respect. It’s rubbish a lot of the time. Nobody wants to be standing in their NMW job from 8 until 6 full of a cold. Obviously they’d rather be tucked up in bed.

Tbh she probably caught it off the kids in the first place! But can't be nice having to work in such a full-on job when so unwell, so must be to do with pay or availability or something. In an ideal world she'd probably rather not be there either!

I assume she feels she has to come in because she doesn’t get paid. If so, what do you suggest the solution is?

Sick days are linked to our Christmas bonus, usually £200. If you have one sick absense you still get 100% two sick absences 75% three and you get £50 any more than that and you get nothing. We are also only on ssp for sick days so you have to be basically dropping to not come in. Not the best policy at it encourages people to come in and it spreads easier like in this nursery workers case.

It punishes the majority for the few who would take advantage of full pay whilst on sick.