Working Sick

[Lace Neil Singer]

I am recovering from a nasty virus right now that made me very ill yesterday and the day before. However, I am on holiday and altho it is annoying to be sick on holiday, in some ways it's great cuz I don't get all that bother about phoning in sick. I don't want to go to the doctor as despite what some deluded idiots think, it's not that easy getting an appointment straight away. I'd probably only get an appointment next week and by then, I'd be totally better.

[KuariKaydrith]

Where I work we are allotted 40 paid sick hours per calendar year, restarting each January 1st. If we go over that we don't get paid for those hours out sick, and at one point as long as we weren't going overboard with calling out we did not get into much trouble. Now it would appear that if we go over a total of 52 sick hours (which includes those 40 paid sick hours) we are risking a write up. So, for somebody like me who needs time off for mental illness and cannot schedule when I am going to have a bad day it can get really frustrating. And I've been written up twice last year for my attendance...got really sick in the beginning of 2014 with a nasty flu and then damn near had a mental breakdown in the last third of 2014 which lead to a lot of call outs on my part. And this is despite being told by management and HR that they would prefer I call out when I am having a bad day than to show up at work and nearly get fired. Such is life :/

[MadMike]

They do not require a doctor's note for every call out but if they feel you are abusing it then they will ask for one.

My job is the same way, although I think you have to provide one if you're out sick three days in a row. That makes sense to me, because if you're sick three days in a row, you probably should see a doctor. But at least they don't expect you to see a doctor for every little cold, or in my case, migraines. I didn't get them when I started there, I started getting them in my late 20s. If I'm lucky, I might get one per month. If I'm not lucky, I might get one or two per week.

[jnd4rusty]

I am very fortunate in my job as we build sick days up each month, I have about 160 hours and we can have up to 960 hours built up. They do not require a doctor's note for every call out but if they feel you are abusing it then they will ask for one. Our management team would rather we call in sick then to spread the germs to those we support. (I work for an agency that supports individuals with disabilities) Germs run rampant in my job since many, if not most, people I support do not wash their hands after using the bathroom, never cover their mouths when coughing and spread germs like wildfire! In fact I was sick the whole month of February, I only missed two days of work due to high fever but I have been sick the whole time. I finally broke down and went to the doctor today (we have a residency clinic that is run by the hospital and takes payments) and was diagnosed with pneumonia and ear infection. I should have saved myself a month of misery and went in earlier...lesson learned!! I am now off work until March 7th. I am thankful for sick pay! I did ask for a note from the doctor because I am just paranoid like that, my bosses were very sympathetic and understanding, and letting me know that they cared and it would not be a problem covering my shifts, even at the last minute! Love that job!! I, of course, have come in and covered shifts at a moments notice, sometimes without any sleep so they are more than willing to help me out!!

[Kittykat]

At my job (hotel night and breakfast staff), if we want to call out sick, we have to arrange our own relief. If we can't, it's either come in or get fired for a no-show. And there's only one other person on the staff trained in my position and her schedule and mine overlap 3 nights a week so she -can't- cover me, and she has two kids and can't often get last-minute child-care. So in four years, I've successfully called out sick once.

Unpaid, of course.

Oh, and if I miss 4 days in a month, I lose my health insurance.

How is that even legal?

[registerrodeo]

Where I work, we are often told we have to leave and we have a list of illnesses where we are not allowed to tough it out because the state mandates it. Right now, we are on another quarantine but surprisingly only 4 employees have gotten the flu also, but everyone else is walking around with the snuffles, or no voice, or the nagging dry cough. I was told the other day I should go home but once I used my inhaler the cough settled down so I stayed on, but we are paid from our accrued PTO time if we miss a day (my last job was no pay plus threats against employment for calling off a day..2 days in 13 years for me) but we do have some shirkers who just call off, including one who called off because she didn't want to get sick...she was written up.

[TheHats]

At my job (hotel night and breakfast staff), if we want to call out sick, we have to arrange our own relief. If we can't, it's either come in or get fired for a no-show. And there's only one other person on the staff trained in my position and her schedule and mine overlap 3 nights a week so she -can't- cover me, and she has two kids and can't often get last-minute child-care. So in four years, I've successfully called out sick once.

Unpaid, of course.

Oh, and if I miss 4 days in a month, I lose my health insurance.

[MelindaJoy77]

I worked sick yesterday but I called in today and I have just enough personal hours to cover it. Rumor is we won't be able to do that after April and I don't know if I'll get sick hours this year or not. Anyway, I actually feel better today than I did yesterday but I just couldn't stand the thought of listening to customers say "well you look like you don't want to be here!" or "you look tired" and "I hope your day gets better" for another entire day

[Dreamstalker]

I did have to call in sick one or two days...and they weren't put in the system as sick days. Apparently telling the MOD that you're sick while hacking up a lung on the phone isn't enough, if it doesn't have an ER/doc note no sick day for you.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Where I work, you're only allowed a certain amount of sick time off a year. If you go over your allotted time, you get a bollocking. Plus, and this is the kicker, you will only get your sick pay if a manager agrees that you're ill. Meaning that if you just phone in, unless you can produce a note from a doctor, you're SOL. Resulting in quite a few people, including myself, who come to work sick just so a manager can send us home later on... oh, and everyone in the sick person's vicinity catching the virus and perpetuating the cycle.

Yes, it sucks. But until the higher ups start treating each case as a separate case rather than just giving a blanket policy on everyone to prevent workers skiving, then I'm going to keep on coming to work sick just so I can get sent home and get my sick pay. There is no way on earth that I'm going to a doctor just for a bad cold or twenty four hour flu; hell, by the time I'd get an appointment, I'd probably be over it, anyway.

[Racket_Man]

I used to see a lot of food service workers in the ER with colds and the like, seeking antibiotics which they didn't need. We'd offer them a work note and they'd turn it down for this reason: no paid sick time. No work no eat.

Sapphire I see this all the time at my pizza place and other places that I go to on a infrequent basis (including me New Year's Eve was hell for me).

No work no eat no rent no utilities, no food, etc.

[Sapphire Silk]

Unfortunately, no paid sick days and no higher ups that give a damn means that not everyone in food service can get a day off or two for illness. I would go in sick when I worked a the Mart that the Waltons built and MW Repair.. because there was no such think as paid sick days and the doc requires money to see a person.

I used to see a lot of food service workers in the ER with colds and the like, seeking antibiotics which they didn't need. We'd offer them a work note and they'd turn it down for this reason: no paid sick time. No work no eat.

[raudf]

If that's the case, even with a "little sore throat" you should not be working.

Unfortunately, no paid sick days and no higher ups that give a damn means that not everyone in food service can get a day off or two for illness. I would go in sick when I worked a the Mart that the Waltons built and MW Repair.. because there was no such think as paid sick days and the doc requires money to see a person.

[Captain Trips]

Uh, it sounds like you are working food service. If that's the case, even with a "little sore throat" you should not be working. What may be minor to you might be a major issue for someone else - and just because you feel like you can tough it out does not mean you're not infectious.

[Ceir]

Believe me, I understand - I work in a cube farm. It's a plague factory. The entire place from October to May is a chorus of sneezing, coughing, throat-clearing, and phlegm. I just keep myself stocked up on tissues, tea, and sinus meds, and wash my hands a lot.