Going to sound like an old man...

It's a guy thing. Always have to do better than the guy before!

 

I dunno, is more better in this case?

 

When it came down to go work and risk infecting others or buying food this week and keeping my lights on yes I'm selfish

 

Some of those things are beginning to be popular again.

 

I work for someone else, but WFH. I put in 9-12 hours a day (and a lot of times have noon-1:00 pm meetings - so yeah, even during lunch), but people just see the car in the driveway and think I can be interrupted any time.

A lot of things start out with people thinking it is a "cold" (coworker, in 3 weeks just went from a "cold" to Covid to now, even though over Covid "maybe" has pneumonia (she declined the tests so can't be positive that is what it is). There are 3 things going around right now, and that doesn't count the flue. The risk isn't so high when just going out for a quick grocery visit because just encountering 1 germ isn't going to do anything (and I see a lot of people who wear masks too). But in an office you are stuck being around those germs and they have a better chance of infecting others. If I was still going into the office, I would be in a cubicle farm with 80-10 other people. Everyone uses the same break room, bathroom, stairs/elevators to other floors in the building. Oh, and everyone touches the same keypad to get back into the office after making trips to bathrooms and other floors in the building.

Hey, and the only person I see besides the people at the dump and a few at the grocery is my neighbor (who I am currently getting groceries for twice a week).

 

Ford and Chev are going to have to start making cars with huge trunks again.

 

Sounds like you shoulda had one or three. Then you'd know what it's like to not be selfish..

 

I don’t work in close contact, proximity, or confined spaces with anyone and only 4 people employed where I work. One is stepdaughter in the office and the wife has her 4 year old son here 3-4 days a week. So I’m exposed to anything there. Next employee is stepson with 1 1/2 year old daughter who my wife also watches a couple days a week, so I am exposed to everything there too. I figure if I feel bad, (unless I can’t get 20ft from the bathroom ) I just as well get paid for it.

 

I work in a High School and sometimes parents don't have a choice, they have to send their child to school especially for the younger grades. Fortunately I am NOT a teacher so I can be a little more arms length from the students. It is a hard choice to make whether to go to work or not. Right now we have a shortage of back up people willing to come in and take care of a classroom. Most of our backup teachers are retired and well into their 70s so it is their health at risk as well.

As mentioned, sometimes it is a decision made more on financial reasons than on health reasons.

 

My wife is an elementary teacher and goes to 3 schools. Basically will see all the kids in the schools, one time or another in a week span. So she's exposed to everything. In over 23 years of teaching, I can't recall one time she has gotten sick.

She must be doing something right hanging out with all those petri dishes.

 

Just keep telling yourself you can't do it and those who do it are just "special". You'll definitely get far in life thinking that way.

 

My wife is a physical therapist but she started in a family practice while still going to school. The first 2 years we lived together she was working there and every sickness that came in the office she brought home to me. She was immune to it all apparently, now I never get sick either.

 

There's not that many drive ins getting put in.

 

Yeah. Its a real bias saying if you use common sense you can stay healthy and avoid the funk that comes around every year. Unfortunately for many, common sense isn't contagious.

 

I joined some friends in neighbor Greene county to visit a gun show. One of them mentioned a retired friend who retired from teaching in uban areas. He contracted a year at the Greene high school. Was shocked to see students actually turned in assignments, completed homework, and passed tests.

 

At my place, if a person abuses sick time, we got rid of them or called them on it with unpaid suspension, regardless of how many they had accumulated. A pattern of calling off before or following their off day rotation or any other suspect pattern would get attention

 

If you get sick time as part of your job, how many days?

I’ll go first. I get 5 and usually use 4-5 a year. If you use more it comes out of your vacation time.

 

We don't get any "sick time". All time off is considered PTO. We also get a couple of days of Personal Holiday (the company only schedules 6-7 holidays per year). This year they scheduled 7 holidays so we get 25 hours of PH. I have no idea how much PTO we get per year since I rarely use any - even when I do take a day off, I end up making it up on other days. It is a small victory when I do use a couple of hours so I don't lose the time.

My previous job, which was for a small, privately owned company, changed over to all PTO also. They did have sick time previously - I think 3 days. IDK since as an desk jockey I could always log in from home, and was expected to if at least a portion of the time, so rarely used any. I did actually use a couple of days when I had a concussion since looking at the computer screen would make me dizzy.

 

I can guarantee one thing- not a single person who works for someone else, has ever said on their deathbed, "I wish I'd spent more time at work."

In elementary school, I used to look up to the students with perfect attendance, as though it was a prize. They got paper certificates with their name and the words "Perfect Attendance."

By middle school I'd realized the scam. That crap piece of paper, vs. one day of fun and freedom away from all the teachers' dirty looks (thank you, Alice Cooper).

Employers are mostly transactional. You give them your time, they give you some money. It's up to them to have a policy regarding attendance, and they should factor days off into the equation, as they are setting the policy. Once set, it is a benefit and should be utilized to it's full affect by self-respecting employees. If violated, also have a clear policy for punishment.

Of course there are going to be exceptions- Maternity/paternity leave, bereavement, long term illness, etc. Just make it clear what the exceptions are and have a clear rulebook to follow.

Oh, and the world ain't going back to the way things were, pre COVID. That was just a warm up pandemic, there will be more, and it probably won't be long before the next one. So employers better figure this out.