hmm . . .
One of the very first things I noticed when I got my first surveying job, was that my employer did not want me to work if I was sick.
Plain & simple, he didn't want me to cause a slowdown in work if other employees got sick.
We see . . . all the time, where employers DO NOT WANT employees to take off work . . . sick or not. This thinking is well established and has been going on for a long time.
Would it be too far to reach, to imagine an employee who gets dreadfully sick from another employee(especially a newer employee), who has asked for(and was denied), time off work for being sick, to blame the employer for his/her predicament?
I know a lot of people will simply say it's the employees responsibility not to make others sick . . . plain & simple.
But, in reality, the employee/employer relationship is very involved and employers often have a real control on employees. After all, we all need food, we need a place to live and we need to pay our bills.
Gee . . . it's actually these "needs", that allow employers to virtually "force" employees to work . . . sick or not. Employers very often know this and often rely on these basic needs in addition to his/her own disregard at putting other workers at risk.
This is something I'm just thinking about considering a slowly recovering economy and so many people out of money, out of work, behind in bills or trying to keep their families together with what, less than ideal work they can get.
I imagine that with all this, a high percentage of people who are lucky to be working, have no sick-days available and can't afford getting fired for doing what I consider the "right", thing to do.
I just wonder, why wouldn't an employer have some civil responsibility to his non-sick employees from sick employees who have claimed sickness(to the company), and asked for time off to recover to no avail . . . or even with threat of discharge?
The original engineer (now retired) would brag how he would always make it to work, sick or not. The next week would see half or more of the office down with whatever disease he was carrying!
STAY HOME!!
-JD-
take all the sick time
we only give 3 paid days a year to avoid the following call:
Office "Eldredge Surveying & Engineering"
Staff "Hello... I'm sick *cough* *cough*. How many sick days do I *sniffle* have?"
Office "You used your last one last month."
Staff "Oh, Ok, I'll be to work in a few moments."
if you have issues with money because of sickness, we will work out an advance.
don't get me sick, i get miserable when i am sick. you will not like me when i am miserable. stay home, get better.
we also allow you to work all the overtime you want when you are well and when we have the work to support extra hours.
People used to be smarter and more considerate of others. Quarantines were required for a reason, they saved money and lives. Modern drug use had lessened the risk and the majority of the population don't even know those who lived in the days before modern drugs, but the over use of those drugs has diminished their effectiveness. Everyday the risk of drug resistant illness increases. Why do you think there is such a fear of a pandemic. Because of the type of people we have became, it will take a pandemic to reinstate enough fear to show consideration of others in our society.
Modern man is very stupid and selfish when it comes to the reality of disease but the lessons of the past will be relearned the hard way.
jud
Those who fail to study their history are bound to repeat it.
My employees accrue 4 hours of annual leave a month, up to 48 hours. After that it's use it or lose it. We pay up to 2 sick days a month, upon my approval. After that, use your annual leave or figure out a way to comp it out. Out of seven guys, we've been able to handle everything that's come along with no system abuse. Almost every Saturday lately we've had a "free" crew of guys making up time out there knocking something out.
If you need to take care of yourself: stay home.
There has been a lot of trade and swap of time this season due to illness. About half of us got the crud before the holidays, the other half during or after. It's been a challenge. Only one is still on "light duty". He's the youngest..go figure.
I have noticed the paper products consumption is up with all the sniffles and such. A small price to pay. We've taken care of ourselves and each other. I'm proud of them all. |-)
The company provides free cheese
Cuts down on toilet paper usage!!
-JD-
"We see . . . all the time, where employers DO NOT WANT employees to take off work . . . sick or not. This thinking is well established and has been going on for a long time."
Where do you see this? I have seen only the opposite in my 40+ years working...
