Sick Days...

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

I'm quite peeved today...

I'm sitting at my desk like I have done for the last 2 days with a streaming nose and FULL of cold. Now today (when we have glorious sunshine) half the company have "phoned in sick with a cold" (not from me I may add). Do you people stay off when you have a 'runny nose'? I always come into work - I usually get sent home. I had flu a couple of years ago and I did stay off then - I was at uni as well, I work with one of the girls at uni; she reported back to work that "dipsy looked terrible" (nice compliment). Anyway I came into work the week after and they took one look at me and said "you look ill go home" - I actually thought I looked ok; I'd had a cough the week before I was off as well, I was literally coughing my guts up on my desk (I paint a flattering picture don't I) - but even with the cough and looking terrible and week off; I still felt incredibly guilty about having a "few" days off (ok I had trouble walking down stairs without falling asleep at the energy used up). It just annoys me that a "sniffle" and half the company phone in sick.

[earthchild]

sickness is a huge no-no in my company!
they never ever believe that you are sick even requesting a doctors note when you've been of sick for 4 days - even if that includes the weekend? ! crazyness..
but i know what you mean, its extremely annoying when you've made effort to come in when your ill and someones not ill taking sick days.
as for your question, i will come into work with a cough or sniffles providing my brain feels ok! the minute it feels like i have a thick head and i know i cant concentrate and feel like all i wanna do is sleep then i wont come in.
but on the other hand i hate it when i get ill cos someone has come in sick and passed it onto to me!!
now im sounding like an impossible person!!

[RagDoll]

Our company can be quite ar5ey about sick days too. If you hit certain 'triggers' you wind up having having a meeting with HR (and it's not that hard to hit these triggers) and they decide where to take it from there. Plus, we have 'back to work' interviews with our line managers after any period of being off ill.

I don't phone in sick unless I genuinely feel ill, even then you get the feeling they don't believe you.

[Bel Bel]

well i work when i am really sick and have to be so ill not to, i think you either have that work ethic or you don't
those that skive always say things like you shouldn't be in spreading your germs, then have 5 days off and try to blame me, even though i may only have been ill for 2 days. The sickies always seem to get everyhting worse than everyone else.amazing how they turn up with a cold once there sick pay runs out though

[Skarlet]

I hate phoning in sick, and will go in even if I feel bad because I think I will feel better by the time I get to work. My bf thinks I am being ridiculous and will try and make me stay home. We have to fill in a sickness form, and have a mini meeting with our manager to say why you were ill, but I think my manager is scared of me, because I haven't actually had one.

[earthchild]

those that skive always say things like you shouldn't be in spreading your germs

thats not entirely true Bel Bel, i dont skive at all but still believe its not beneficial
to come in sick and spread germs, people dont always have the best immune system and someone with a poor immune system may not be able to come into work when they've had the same illness as someone esle who may be able to come into work, if that makes sense ?
but then again, i guess its not fair to ask people to stay off if they feel well enough to come into work.

[Bel Bel]

i totally agree with what your saying but if you meet these people you would know they fit my description
too ill to come to work but seen out on a friday night partying up but then too ill to come in on the Monday and one who has been struck off from more than one doctor cause she obviously has muchhasusen

[earthchild]

oh yes we have a few of them at my work...

i dont skive at all

actually may be a bit of a white lie, i guess you could say me being on PP when at work is skiving!!

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

Yea when I had the flu and NO energy to even walk upstairs...my dad said "you aren't ill enough to skive" - bearing in mind I was REALLY ill, so it wasn't skiving...and then he had a week off a couple of weeks later "skiving".

I know what you mean about those people Bel Bel...We have one at work; we have a few but ONE is really bad. He's not in today (shock horror), no one knows if he's on holiday and he hasn't called in. The thing with work is they are so soft so will just say "I hope you get better soon"; at least with me coming in, when I am off they know it's pretty bad.

My bf always used to "have a weekend off work" - until I pointed it out...we used to work in a supermaket so got paid every 4 weeks...the sunday after every pay day he'd be off ill (sometimes Saturday as well) - I said it's convenient that you are always ill the weekend after we get paid....he never took another weekend off (it's not like he went out and got drunk - he doesn't drink).

I'm just pleased I'm not the only idiot who comes to work, sits there and feels rubbish.

[spacegirl]

i never phone in sick either, mostly because i hate making that phonecall. also because i worked in retail for so many years so i worked a lot of weekends - whenever someone phones in sick on a sat or sun morning - it's assumed it's a hangover.

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

whenever someone phones in sick on a sat or sun morning - it's assumed it's a hangover.

Ha we used to go to work hungover. I used to finish my night at 3am and be at work for 8am on a Sunday. I can't do it anymore though.

My friend still works at the same place and he said all the "students" are boring and not one of them comes in hungover - every student when I worked there did.

[Bel Bel]

actually may be a bit of a white lie, i guess you could say me being on PP when at work is skiving!!

But you have turned up to do work, you can't possibly do it if your at home. Not having enough to do or cramming it in quickly so you can come on pp is soooo allowed

[mattmxl]

Our place isn't brilliant for sick days either, they're not keen on you taking them even if ur dying and these "back to work" interviews come around pretty quickly for just a couple of days abscence. You have to provide a doctors note after 5 days which is fair enough really. I generally find myself taking my holiday time when I'm ill to avoid such interviews and not be accused of poor attendance. Being sick is too much of a hassle in certain companies it would seem.

[rufio89]

Ive not been off sick here yet, so I dont know what they're like, they were quite reasonable at my old company.

I think theyre ok here, but then we dont get paid sick pay so it's no odds to them lol

[captainf]

Thing is though is that calling in sick could be different for certain companies. Afterall, do you really want supermarket workers or people working around food to be at work when they have a cold? I sure wouldnt, they might sneeze or cough all over the products you end up picking up off the shelf.

When I worked for one of the major supermarkets they came accross as a great company for flexibility due to illness etc when I first started.. then I called in sick one day, I called within the guidelines (company policy was to call in no later than 1hr after your shift has begun) I called in 2hrs before my shift began. When I returned to work not only did my boss moan at me for only giving them notice 2hrs before my shift began, he stated that he could sack me if he wanted. I was given one of them ridiculous back to work interviews.

I'm so glad I never crashed my plane during my time working there, wouldnt want to have to spend time in hospital otherwise I would of had to of discharged myself from there to drag myself to work incase my boss got upset that I had a broken arm, leg and internal bleeding and didnt turn up for work, so instead I could of dropped dead at work and then become a legal liability on Safeway instead...

but in all seriousness, why are the workers made to feel bad for having sick leave? Becoming sick is what happens to humans. The human health is much much more important than any commercial company or the economy.