To be shocked at how much time off sick some people have?

[Enfys1982]

I work in a school and since I started in the sector it’s been a bit of eye opener to me how much sick time some people seem to take, and it always seems to be the same people. Days here and there, sometimes weeks on end then they come back for a bit go off again. As I said always the same people.

The last time I was off was last year when I had Covid, and I was only off because then you still legally had to isolate if positive. I actually felt well enough to go in. Before that I genuinely can’t remember when I was off sick. If I feel bad I just dose myself up and get on with it.

AIBU to think it displays a lack of resilience?

For years and years a colleague is ' sick ' over every single school holiday.
And gets away with it!
Yanbu.

Loving the instant defensiveness of posters on this thread. Yes, people do lack resilience, it's apparent everywhere and not just in days off sick. People who have (self-diagnosed) anxiety, people who have (self-diagnosed) adhd, people who can't possibly do anything to help themselves (eat more healthily, give up smoking, exercise) because it can't be their responsibility to take care of their health. I have every sympathy for the genuinely ill with chronic conditions, but that's not the majority of people.

I agree with the OP, it's the people who have three days off for something which you could be well enough after a day's rest (as an example) who are swinging the lead.

Likely to increase where there are companies insisting on a full time return to the office where the job was manageable at least part of the time working from home.

Some people are lucky to rarely get sick and other people seem to catch everything going. I'm thankful to have only needed to call in sick for 2 days over the last 5 years, I don't consider those who have had to call in sick more often to be unresilient.

How are equpied to asses their medical requirements though?

I have endo & have kept it really private at work. It's under control now. I looked absolutely health but took days off where the pain was killing me. I've also used stomach bug or cold when speaking to colleagues when it's none of their business.

I also recall working with someone tears ago who was always phoning in sick on Mondays. Really resented it as though it was hangovers. All of us did. After he was referred to occupational health,they were diagnosed with diabetes, eating out & drinking at weekends were making it worst than during the week.

Learnt my lesson - you never really now what's actually going on & shouldn't be so judgmental.

I'd rather lack resilience than lack empathy, compassion and imagination like you, OP. Sorry, but is it really beyond the realms of your mind that people have massively varied lives, in terms of health, responsibilities, disabilities, safety, etc.?

You are the kind of person that causes the anxiety suffered by those of us who have to take more time off sick than "normal" due to disability. Shame on you.

You sound like the type who has bought into the culture of presenteeism here and still comes into work when they're sick, soldiering on whilst infecting everyone else around you with your illness. You're not going to get a medal, you know.

Yes, some take the P going off sick regularly but that's for management to deal with isn't it? If they're not dealing with it and it's impacting you then have a word with them or seek alternative employment where staff care is important.

I would have thought it was obvious the OP wasn't talking about people with cancer or serious illnesses! But yes so may people take the piss, especially within organisations like the NHS where its near enough impossible to get rid of anyone.

You're just lucky OP, not special. You'll find a period of your life comes when you have a favourite car parking space in your local hospital multi-storey car park as you're there so much. Either for you or a much loved relative. Enjoy your good health and mind your own business. Let the Manager's manage your 'colleagues'.

Yes, and as per my point above, single day calculations aren't very helpful when it comes to long term conditions and struggling in for all but one day where you can't.

But then a lot of HR is based on a fundamentally antagonistic view of the worker-employer relationship.

Obviously you have no idea what is going on with someone else. Some people have an ongoing condition, some are just unlucky, some are taking the piss.

My friend has three kids and she and her kids are ill way more than me and my kids, stomach bugs, migraines, chest infections, fevers, asthma attacks etc. My kids and I are almost never ill. That's just luck.

Quite. It's an age old adage to remind ourselves that we never, ever know what is going on in peoples' private lives, and we must never assume. Some people seem very resistant to this fact, though, preferring to get indignant and judgmental about it.

I've not been off sick for ages (years) but I'm not so stupid as to think ill health, whether physical or mental, is made up.

Every office has someone called "sick note"
We've limited the paid sickness now as it was getting ridiculous.
So the pisstakers have ruined it for everyone else. Again. As usual.

However some of those people will have genuine issues so not a lack of resilience whilst others will be the piss takers.

You can't generalise neither would you be privy to confidential health information about some of your colleagues.

Like.

YABVU
You cant possibly tell someones medical history by looking at them.
Lack of resilience?? How judgemental are you?!!!

I have a lot of time off sick, and I'm incredibly resilient. It's between me, my manager, occupational health and HR

It depends on work environment. So in a school you are being exposed to germs from children and need to be on A game. Can’t leave children unattended if you are needing to run to bathroom constantly.
I mainly wfh desk based and haven’t had any time off at all because I have limited contact with people (colleagues stay off or wfh if sick) and I can still work even if I feel under weather.
In a previous firm 100% in office with only ssp and awful culture/management people came in with all sorts and it spread like wildfire think people puking in bins, running to loo with D & V. They amended policy to make you be off if you were contagious.

As long as people are following HR policy and reporting sickness as required- it’s none of your business.

If you are working in a school the absences are probably linked to mental health and stress issues.

Its not a case of just getting on with it if you are on the edge of a breakdown, as many teachers are

Obviously many people have health issues and, as such, will have recurring absences.

That aside, when working in public sector I did observe some people who played the system using time off to avoid busy work periods for example. I’m not speculating - they freely admitted it!

I also had one colleague who was completely workshy and when complaints about his sheer lack of output cropped up he went off with stress. This has been happening consistently for at least five years. I put in complaints about him (with evidence) and was made to feel unreasonable as he has a busy job which is stressful. I would be prepared to accept that if he actually attempted to do anything.

Now I’m back in the corporate world I can’t see that type being so easily tolerated!

Going to work when sick and spreading germs to potentially vulnerable people is hardly something to be proud of.

There are definitely some people who take advantage of good sick policies and go off sick for every little thing that others would work through. But I do also think it’s the nature of some jobs. In my work, if I’m unwell I can work from home and working whilst in bed or on the sofa is quite easy to do if not really unwell. In teaching there isn’t that option, and it would be a lot harder to struggle through the day in a school with no opportunity to rest or take it easy.

But that so called lack of resilience is often underlying health conditions. Lots of people have invisible diseases or take medications that affect their immune systems. They probably don’t want to tell you so you have no idea.

Presenteeism is not something to be proud of or something to be encouraged. Some people need time off and some people take advance but the latter are usually in the minority.

Don’t be so judgemental about everyone.