Imagine a world where you’re required to submit a formal request for illness: “Dear HR, I will be down with the flu next Thursday. Kindly approve my sick leave and inform the staff.”
You’d also have to include your proposed recuperation time, as coming to work mid-fever would be frowned upon. Perhaps you should also plan a follow-up illness if the first one falls short.
Illnesses are inconvenient, of course – they have no concern for your team meetings, deadlines, or the current understaffing of your department.
But some companies like to think workers have complete control over when and how they become ill. Being sick is not good enough – apparently, you also have to forecast WHEN you will be sick and make sure it falls at a “convenient” time for the business.
Consequently, a society that expects people to work through their illness causes fatigue, extended recuperation, and even workplace disease transmission.
The core of this problem is a general mistrust. Some companies believe staff members would take days off for fun and leisure, abusing sick-leave rules. Though it does happen, abuse of sick leave is far less widespread than the concern around it suggests.
Companies foster mistrust by micromanaging sick leave, undermining employee morale. Consequently, workers feel guilty or nervous about taking care of their health and not being supported during a sensitive period.
The real cost
Ultimately, encouraging workers to work while sick hurts the individual and is bad for business. Here are some reasons:
- Decreased productivity: A sick employee at work is less productive than one recovering at home.
- Increased spread of illness: Making staff members come in when sick may cause whole teams to fall ill, aggravating the situation.
- Burnout and attrition: Those who feel unsupported are more prone to burnout and may look for possibilities elsewhere, increasing turnover rates.
What’s a better approach?
Companies must implement more sensible and sympathetic sick-leave rules to solve this problem. These are some starting points:
- Have good faith: Assume staff members are using sick leave for justifiable reasons. A little trust builds loyalty and respect in great measure.
- Focus on health, not control: Change the story from “proving” sickness to “bolstering recovery”. Motivational tools let staff members prioritise their health without thinking about consequences.
- Educate leadership: Train HR staff and managers on the value of sick leave as well as the negative effects of micromanaging it.
- Lead by example: By using sick leave when necessary, leaders can set an example of good behaviour for the rest of the company.
Workplaces flourish when staff members feel appreciated, trusted and supported. It is time for businesses to handle sick leave seriously and give the welfare of their employees first priority, rather than view each leave application as a source of inconvenience or mistrust.
This article was originally written by Anisa Aznan for jobstore.com, an online job site that specialises in providing jobseekers with the latest job opportunities by matching talented individuals with reputable companies in Malaysia. Find your dream job with over 40,000 job vacancies in Malaysia.
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