Dive Brief:
- Nine in 10 workers said they have come to work with cold or flu-like symptoms, according to a new Accountemps survey. Of the 2,800 workers in the online poll, 33% said they always go to work when they're not feeling well.
- The reasons respondents gave for coming to work ill were because they had too much work to do (54%) or they didn't want to use their sick time (40%). In other survey results, more respondents ages 18 to 24 reported always coming to work ill than any other age group.
- "Whether it's due to large workloads, pressure from the boss or because they can't afford to take time off, it's all too common for employees to come to the office feeling sick when they really should be resting," said Michael Steinitz, senior executive director of Robert Half's Accountemps division, in a media release. Steinitz added that managers can set an example for workers by staying home when they're ill, encouraging workers to do likewise, allowing employees with minor illnesses to work from home or hiring temporary workers to fill in.
Dive Insight:
Whether employees pressure themselves to come to work ill or their managers force them to do so, workplaces that show they care about workers' well-being have a better chance of keeping workers onboard, the results of a recent study by the Limeade Institute showed. In fact, the report revealed that 60% of employees who said they felt cared for by their companies planned to stay for three or more years, compared to only 7% of those who didn't feel cared for by their employer.
As employers consider drafting paid time off (PTO) policies to encourage under-the-weather workers to stay home, they may want to think about how their company culture would affect such a policy. Leaders' willingness to take leave can signal a lot to employees, experts previously told HR Dive. If a male senior executive welcomes a new baby and fails to take the paternal leave the company offers, other men at the company may feel pressured to follow his lead, even if that's not what he intended. Similarly, if a team's manager shows up to work with a fever and a cough, it's more likely some of the manager's direct reports will feel they have to go to work the next time they have the flu.
