Working while sick shouldn’t be the norm!
For one, working while sick is actually counterproductive. If showing up to work means the job assigned to you gets done, being present at the office at a reduced capacity doesn’t guarantee that the work is up to standard. You won’t have to do it again. Substandard work equals less productivity. Furthermore, physical presence does not always mean productivity. Not only does sickness affect levels of quality, but it also lengthens recovery time, keeping workers from coming back healthy in as little time as possible. If bosses force employees to fight through their sickness, the time they could’ve used to rest and recover exacerbates their illness even more.
Not to mention that showing up to work at a time when flu cases are at an all-time high. A long list of viral illnesses is circulating in the environment is, at best irresponsible and, at worst, downright selfish, with little regard for the welfare of others. We never know what our colleagues are going through health wise. You don’t know if they or their loved ones are immunocompromised. Plus, you don’t know if they go home to families who could be particularly vulnerable to diseases. By exposing ourselves to the workplace in such a condition, we are putting more than our coworkers at risk. Plus, we are putting the lives of their loved ones on the line.
