To ask if you would go into work with this?

[dooberydah]

Hypothetical (because this was me, today, and I did go to work and didn’t think twice about not going)

If you had a quick-onset virus, as in, fine one day and symptoms rapidly develop from that evening into feeling terrible when you wake up the next day. Would you go to work (or if it was DC, send them to school?)

In myself I have felt mostly fine if a little chilly at times, but I have been streaming today. I haven’t been able to stop my nose running and sneezing loads, as well as very watery eyes which looks a bit like I am crying.

I can work from home tomorrow so not a big deal with that but I am now hoping I didn’t pass anything on to colleagues - if it is just a cold it’s particularly unpleasant! I really hate phoning in sick for trivial things too and would never if I could avoid it in case I really need to one day.

What would you have done with those symptoms?

I agree completely. I just despair of the attitude of ‘oh, it is only minor’ and how people seem to think they are doing colleagues a favour by not letting them down while infecting them with a virus.

I would have either taken the day off sick, so as to not spread it to colleagues and as rest helps you recover, OR would have worked from home because of it.

I'm fairly sure they cannot use your pregnancy loss time off against you as that is discrimination. This would only be your third absence in 12 months anyway, so no action would come from it.

I'm sorry to hear about the pregnancy loss.

If your absences were looked into, a firm that didn't exclude this from consideration in the total would risk discrimination, so if your HR dept is professional or your manager is empathetic/ competent, you shouldn't worry about this.

Get well soon.

Im a nurse and we’re to go into work with Covid now, wearing a face mask. I actually felt really awful last week but had no choice but to go in because when I had Covid for the 5th time in September it triggered sickness policy so I had to go in last week clearly unwell but I wore a face mask out of respect. Unfortunately we can’t all just take days off because we’re unwell

I think pre Covid, people at work were expected generally to work through colds. Not with temperatures etc, but a cough and runny nose simple cold, working in office was norm, and yep, did get passed around, and generally people sort of accepted it as fact of life

post Covid, stuff has changed
first there’s a lot of Covid and hard to tell in early stages, and no one testing much these days. No one, rightly, wants to risk getting it, so get very cross, with folks exposing themselves when they are coughing etc

secondly, we’ve lost a lot of immunity to colds and viruses due to isolation, workin* from home. People are getting worse symptoms with what is normal cough, cold virus. and getting ill more often as each virus passes through. So again no one wants to expose themselves and tolerance is low to colleagues coming in with bugs

frankly, we should do what they’ve always done in far east; wear masks if we’re bug ridden and have to socialise. Does prevent some infection viral load passing on, but also sends a polite visual signal to stay “ downwind” of masked person- like a plague sign 🥴🤣. They did that in far east years before Covid.

On balance, if you go in feeling like shit, wear a mask or work from home if you can. It’s not fair on folks, and doesn’t help the business in long term anyway.

For me it would depend. Normally I would go into work like that but not if I was going to be in close contact with a pregnant or vulnerable colleague or client. In that case I would work from home but my employer is very flexible in that respect.

I would go in but then I would have got it from one of the bastards I work for/with. And can't work from home

Yes I'd go in like that, and worse.
Apart from the financial impact of not getting paid, it would put my job at risk because people where I work, despite not getting sick pay, are always taking the piss when they phone in sick because we are a special brand of human who never gets ill. Ever.

I've worked in a few places like that as well - none of them providing sick pay, yet still adamant you're taking the piss if you are human enough to get an illness now and again.

I have seen people sacked for it, with less and more than 2 years service.

You want people to stop going to work unwell and passing it on? Then the above culture needs to change and employers acknowledge that when they employ humans, sometimes humans get sick.

I'd much rather be at home resting and getting better but unfortunately I may be risking being at home permanently if I do.

I always go unless i’m dying. Hate phoning in sick always feel guilty.

Depends where you work and how much it would impact on your colleagues for you not to be there. But also I'd be pretty passed off if you coughed and sneezed near me at work and gave it to me. You wouldn't be my favourite person.

It's all quite conflicting, really.

I'm public sector, so on the one hand, you've decent provision for sick pay, but on the other hand, you're sanctioned if you use it too much!!

I often had the internalised debate - am I sick enough to not go in? Where is the cut-off point?

Since Covid, it thankfully no longer matters, because I'm WFH, and if I am not well and have a face-to-face meeting, I can usually switch to Teams.

What a shame though that it took Covid to update our working practices into the 21st century!

I go in unless I physically can’t drag myself there. 3 or more sickness absences (or 10 or more days) in a year gets you a disciplinary. Additionally, I just scraped through a round of redundancies, and I think round 2 will be coming in the new year; absences is something they’re looking at. So while I wish I could stay at home, I will drag myself in instead.

Unless a leg is hanging off, I'm going to work.

I’m generally a try work…kind of person except if it’s bad enough that I don’t sleep well, then I’ll call in.

My next test is to take a shower. Most times that makes me feel better so I do the ‘I’ll try it and see how it goes’

I do wfh 99% of the time so it’s a lot easier to work while feeling under the weather.

Other times, I say screw it, I don’t feel well and have a lazy day. Those days are pretty’s rare though.

@Whatthefnow Me too. Although I would probably draw the line at D&V too as you’d feel too awful to work. Fortunately that hasn’t happened in years.

@dooberydah you had the flu and a pregnancy loss- poor you what a year. Anyone who thought badly of you for taking time off can get in the bin even if they don't know exactly what you went through. Please stop caring what colleagues think - only your manager matters- there's not a chance any
Of them would come
In ill Just in case you and another colleague made a comment about them being off again

I wear a mask at work as I do medical treatments (private aesthetics practice not hospital/doctor surgery based). If I was able to take some meds and power through with mask and basic hygiene I would but I would message all my patients for the day and say I’m feeling unwell with X symptoms it’s your choice if you want to keep your appointment or reschedule (most people keep them iv found).

I would say it depends on if your customer facing so to speak or sat in a big building in your own office and also how important your job role is - can the business cope without you/can anyone cover etc.

Of course ideally people should be off but if it was genuinely just a bad cold I don’t think it’s a good enough reason given it’s the season people get sick.

I would have worked from home and gone into the office on another day.

Please stay home and if possible, test yourself for COVID. It's rampant. Make sure to swab your throat and nose and be aware that many tests aren't showing positive till day 4 of symptoms, and a negative doesn't necessarily mean it's not COVID. But if it's positive you can warn your colleagues that they've been exposed.

Get well soon.