Paid sick leave

[aerok]

Originally Posted by GermanyChris

My wife gets 3 years and I believe 40% of her salary.

Is it the job that offers 3 years or the government?

[glocke12]

Originally Posted by jnpy!$4g3cwk

I hate it when people either don't have, feel they can't use, or won't use sick leave. Because I hate to get the flu and I hate to be around people who have the flu and are trying to give it to me. Sick leave is a benefit for people who are perfectly well and want to stay that way.

As do I....I called out Friday, and basically was bedridden from Fri. to Mon. (monday was a holiday)...Went in to work today feeling much better but was still coughing and sneezing. Unfortunately I felt, or rather was made to feel that I didn't have choice with respect to going in as I received an email late last night asking about some critical experiments I was supposed to perform Friday.

Along the same lines, I'd like to point out that in some corporate cultures (such as mine), going into work when you are at deaths door is something that is more or less celebrated. People often receive and praise recognition for going into work when they are very ill, have been in car accidents etc...

[GermanyChris]

Originally Posted by aerok

Is it the job that offers 3 years or the government?

it's required by law.

[hulugu]

Originally Posted by glocke12

...

Along the same lines, I'd like to point out that in some corporate cultures (such as mine), going into work when you are at deaths door is something that is more or less celebrated. People often receive and praise recognition for going into work when they are very ill, have been in car accidents etc...

We've more or less split the difference. If you endured a car accident (or some other happenstance), you're supposed to grin through it. I once stepped on a nail that went right through my shoe, so I fixed the wound with duct tape, and then came in with my shoe stuffed with paper towels. My editor told me not to bleed on anything.
And, anyone who calls in sick for a hangover is derided. Each office has their own cure and the first ingredient is to add a pinch of "Suck it up."

But, if you're sick and you arrive into the office, you're summarily ejected with a box of kleenex while the matronly office assistant immediately sprays anything you might have touched with the antibacterial equivalent of the nuclear bomb.

Generally, I think you should have a workforce you trust and treat people like adults. If someone calls in sick, that's their business. If they're using the time to sit in the sun, maybe that's what they need. (We've had people with PTSD and frankly, if they need the time, they get the time). If they're home in bed, fevering and puking, why in god's name would you want them in the office, heaving into a wastebasket?

Sick time keeps disease from spreading and gives people the time to get better. If someone gets the three-day weekend flu, their performance evaluation will note it.

If a small-business is scraping by, requiring flu-ridden workers to cough and sneeze is bad for the business and bad for customers. Imagine the thrill of going to deli counter and noticing that the guy shaving the ham is blowing his nose every five minutes. Or, shaking hands with someone who immediately hurtles off to vomit into the toilet of the house they're showing.

I want sick people to stay home, use email and the phone and stay away from the office. I send people home myself.