Stay Home When Sick: Flu Epidemic

Flu season is out in full force It’s hit unprecedented levels in almost every state across the country. Now, more than ever, it is time to hammer in a simple truth that business owners should pass on to their employees. If you’re sick, stay home.

There are many honorable reasons why your employees come into work when they are sick. They only have a limited amount of personal days. Maybe they are on a deadline, or have a huge project going on. They don’t want to let down their coworkers or burden them to pick up the slack if they take a sick day. However, when you weigh the pros and cons of staying home when sick, it paints a different story.

Coming to work when sick significantly increases the chance that you will get your coworkers sick. Not only that, but you will work at a lower productivity level than you would if you were at your normal level of good health. There are options to missing a minimal amount of work, even if you’re sick.

Here are some tips from CNN on working during flu season. Take a sick day. If you get sick, take the day off. Giving your body a chance to recover will help you return to work quicker and at full strength. Work from home if your boss and job allow it. Wi-fi, cloud drives, video chat, and our mobile devices allow us to work from pretty much anywhere these days. If you can take a day or two and work from home, you won’t lose any sick leave, and no one else gets sick. Limit contact with others. If for some unavoidable reason you can’t work from home, try and limit your contact with others at the office so you can avoid spreading germs.

Make appropriate arrangements. Taking a moment to organize yourself will make taking a sick day easier. Definitely let your boss know if you’re going to be sick, but you should give a heads up to your coworkers as well. Send them an email to let them know if you won’t be in, so they aren’t surprised when they go looking for you.

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Wellness programs not only deliver proven returns on investment for employers through reduced costs and improved productivity, they can also help drive loyalty. Let Sinclair help you enrich your benefits plan with a connecticut wellness program that is designed to bring health back to people’s daily lives. Give us a call at 203.265.0996, email us, or return the form on this page.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/worklife/02/02/cb.do.not.work.sick/index.html