Hi there,
Over the past several weeks, I am hearing of more and more friends and extended family members contracting Covid (I’m sure you are experiencing the same).
Thankfully, none of them have had a serious reaction and each individual is recovering well at home.
When I say “recovering well at home”, however, for several of the virtual workers amongst them, this means continuing to work remotely while being sick.
Of these individuals, none of them have said that they feel overt pressure from their employer to work through their illness. The reason they feel the need to continue to work is because they know that the workload will not be done while they are off. This is either due to a lack of resources or the nature of the work that they do. They believe that working while sick is better than the alternative of feeling stressed while off and upon their return to work.
I understand their logic but it doesn’t sound right to me.
The managers of each of these individuals have to be aware that this is happening. Maybe they have just accepted this as “the way things are done around here.”
Is it not up to each respective manager to recognise these damaging behaviours and challenge the status quo? Does the manager not hold a responsibility to support these individuals in planning for this type of circumstance, allowing the employee to comfortably take time off?
In a world where, generally, leaders in organisations are saying that they understand the importance of employees’ mental health and wellbeing, what message does it send out if they are allowing this practice to continue?
If this culture exists within your organisation, what can you do to change it? Challenge the way things have always been done because something needs to change, as having a fear of taking time off is not sustainable.
What work practices can you review this week that are misaligned with your organisation’s wellbeing policy?
How can you “do the right thing” by your employees by putting their health first?
I would love to know if this is a discussion you are considering having within your organisation or if you already have ideas on how to amend your current work practices around sick leave workloads.
Aoife
