I completely agree. If you work at a company that offers sick time as a benefit, take it.

What I see happen most commonly as to why people don't use sick time when they're sick is because they are fearful. Fearful that taking sick time will be held against them the next time their performance review comes up. I've seen company policys that contradict themselves because they offer sick time, then hold it against their employees if they take it. That's illogical thinking to me because it benefits the company if only a few employees are out sick as opposed to many.

For your symptoms, try Echinacea/Goldenseal tincture in a shotglass of water and chase it with fruit juice 3 times/day until you feel better.

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Sean

Ok, I have to come clean and admit that I'm one of those people. But I have to justify my actions a little, if I may. Our company gives us a bank of paid time off, to be used for either vacation or sick time, and frankly, if I'm gonna take a vacation day, it sure as heck isn't going to be wasted by being sick... unles there is just no way I'll be able to make that 1/2hour commute to the office. but for those of you that have seperate sick and vacation days... there's no excuse.

I'm sorry you aren't feeling well. I work in a large office and soon the waves of illness will sweep through.

I do need to point out that your post is neither long enough nor incoherent enough to be considered a proper rant. You should try to digress at least three times in any properly formed rant, and make vague references to "the man", "the system", or "those people". You could also try adding condescending and/or stereotypical generalizations in order to guarantee some responses. These are just a few examples, but they'll get you started.

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I had the same situation, 2 weeks vacation, 3 days discretionary. The Discretionary was considered our sick leave, but could be used for whatever. 3 days is certainly not enough sick leave, when the vacation time isnt more. I am now unemployed so I dont have to worry about that.

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http://www.ventuscustoms.com Custom Bicycle Painting.

Your particular instance is more than justified. The company, in it's short-sided wisdom, has taken away the separation between sick time and vacation time to minimize overhead and maximize profits. It looks good on paper until it's put into practice (sick people work slower and can infect others). Untimately, the company makes out like bandits because they no longer have to have separate sick time accountings, placed the responsibility of the time bank on the employee (further reducing overhead) and now has employees, who otherwise would have called in sick, working instead of staying home.

After saying that, I'd like to balance it by saying it's better than no bank of time off at all or being unemployed.

My personal action plan to remain as healthy as possible at work during the flu season is to get the Comapny-provided or medical plan-provided flu shot. I had the flu in '97 that turned into bronchitis and an ear infection. Never again I vowed and have not had the flu (nor bronchitis or an ear infection) since that time.

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Sean

Sorry but that accounting doesn't fly. I work for a company that offers separate sick time and vacation time, and this is actually more favorable to the company than just offering "flex" time for the employee to use as needed. The reason is that vacation time is a liability that the company needs to accrue for because if an employee leaves or is fired they have to pay them their accumulated vacation time. Sick time is totally different, and no accrual is taken. So, by offering, say, 2 weeks vacation and 1 week sick time vs 3 weeks flex time, the company has to hold less cash in reserves. I personally would LOVE it if my company switched to offering flex time. I currently have accumulated over 500 hours of sick time that I have no hope of ever using and will never get paid for. It's a bogus benefit.

sorry, everyone, but i don't really feel much sympathy. you get sick days - i don't. as a college student, of course i can hypothetically skip every class every day; but i've reached the point in my academic career where if i miss a class, i'm screwed.

add to that the fact that i rarely get more than 6 hours of sleep a night (generally 4-5), andthe fact that i am constantly surrounded by sick people in classes. and the fact that i work in a hospital.

so, i look at triathlon training as my own little way of fortifying my immune system. if only it'd help me do better in classes.

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http://www.theninjadon.blogspot.com

"The bicycle riders drank much wine, and were burned and browned by the sun. They did not take the race seriously except among themselves." -- Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises

My apologies ... let me continue:

And furthermore let me state for the record that this type of selfish, "it's all about me" behavior is indicative of the Ready-Made, Five Minute Ab, American Idol Society we live in. What happened to care and compassion for the fellow man? No... we are all such slaves to the widget-moving corporate juggernaught that our time, or lives and our health is being hijacked in the all mighty pursuit of the dollar.

And what's the deal with those Olsen Twins? Are they part Leprechaun? Do they live in a magic tree with the Keebler Elves?

And what happened to customer service in this country? Good Lord, is it that difficult to say thank you after I buy my cold medicine at the drug store? No one takes pride in their work anymore ... especially the Belgians!

okay I have a head rush now ... back to bed

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No sidewindin bushwackin, hornswaglin, cracker croaker is gonna rouin me bishen cutter!

i totally know how you feel...i got sick right in the middle of midterms these past 2 weeks. I had a couple marks that were HIGHLY reflective of how i felt that day...:P

time off just doesnt happen...the world keeps going and you either take the time off, and have to catch up later, or not take the time off and feel like shit :(



oh well,



c'est la vie,



-kg

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"Anyone can work hard when they want to; Champions do it when they don't."

1st semester, freshman year:

i eat an omellete (spelling?) at the dining hall the sunday before finals. that afternoon, i'm puking and have a fever. completely incapacitated for the two "reading days" before finals. it wasn't till the night before my first final that i could do any meaningful studying. haven't eaten in the dining halls since.

anyway, i hope you feel better. kick some ass the rest of the semester.

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http://www.theninjadon.blogspot.com

"The bicycle riders drank much wine, and were burned and browned by the sun. They did not take the race seriously except among themselves." -- Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises

Do you at least get unused sick days to count as retirement/pension credits if you leave that job? (has been that way at places I've worked, not sure if it's mandated or universal)

I'm also in the "stay the hell home when you're sick" group. It's not a virtue to play freakin' Typhoid Mary in your place of employment. I don't want to get that awful hacking cough's that's going around.

I live in disease vector central. First you have the tourists. No matter how sick they are, they're not going to skip their 5 days of non-holidays related vacation and give up their condo deposits. So they come down and breathe all over you in the mall, at the beach, at the restaurants, etc.

Then there are the military folks. Not that they can help it, but they're TDY everywhere in the world, and bring back all kinds of nifty viruses and bacteria strains that the typical American doesn't have much immunity to. I am so not looking forward to whatever this year's version of the Uzbeki Death Snots turns out to be. And then they pass the bug to the spouse and kids. Spouse goes to work anyways, and the kids go to school sick when they should be homes, and all that fun stuff. You would think people would learn after we had SARS in one of the elementary schools last spring, but no.

I don't get a flu shot. Whatever the normal flu strain for the rest of the country is, something totally different than that will be the bug going around in town.

Studies at places where large numbers of people are concentrated together (i.e., boot camps) have shown that washing your hands numerous times per day will reduce the likelihood of getting colds and flu. Everytime you touch a doorknob, stair rail, or anything else, you are picking up all the germs of anyone else who touched it. Then you rub your eyes or pick your nose, and Bingo, you've got a cold coming on. So remember the words to the song Cap'n Carl (Phil Hartman) used to sing on the Pee-Wee Herman Show:

"Oh, a sailor travels to many lands, Anywhere he pleases. And he always remembers to wash his hands, So's he don't get no diseases!"

And if I may add something else about society... The corporate juggernaut known as Starbucks-Microsoft-Ford has created a system whereby it strips you of all your self-worth and then sells it back to you at a premium.

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Animal!!!

Maybe the flu germs are being transmitted through the airwaves by Clear Channel DJs to rednecks in pickup trucks who the give them to bicyclists by filling up beer bottles with them and chucking them on the side of the road? Also, the French must be involved in this conspiracy, too. If only we had socialized medicine in the US, none of this would be happening.

Re: "Do you at least get unused sick days to count as retirement/pension credits if you leave that job? (has been that way at places I've worked, not sure if it's mandated or universal) "

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Nope, they are simply lost if they are unused at the time I leave the company. That's why the company doesn't have to reserve cash for those accrued hours like they do for vacation time. Nice little scam, eh? "Here are some sick hours for you instead of vacation, but you can't use them because we discourage people calling in sick, and we won't pay you for them if you don't use them."

FYI: There are several states (California being one of them) that have made "use it or lose it" policies with regard to vacation time illegal.

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No sidewindin bushwackin, hornswaglin, cracker croaker is gonna rouin me bishen cutter!

Ah, yes. Except this isn't vacation time, it sick time ;-) The beauty of this little trickery is in how many loopholes it can jump through.

Companies do not set aside cash for leave time, whether it be vacation time, sick time, or a combined leave time. They accrue expense which leaves a liability on the balance sheet. Having a liability is much different than Cash. A "use it or lose it" policy would eliminate the liability.

dude.. its only minimal exercise which bolsters the immune system... i work out at intensity for 6-10 hours a week.. (university swim team) and i am always sick because my body is using its energy to repair muscle damage instead of immune system... my cure.. carry purell everywhere.. and use it.. and take lots of echinasia pills.. but i still am always sick.. it sucks frankly

Any specific ideas you use to stay healthy?

David

You are absolutely correct that it doesn't tie up "real" cash- thanks for the correction. What the accrued liability does do, however, is reduce retained earnings (profit). For a publicly traded company in a downturn (or for any company, for that matter), maximizing retained earnings is everything, so minimizing liabilities is huge. Given the volatility of the industry I'm in (semiconductor capital equipment) we're always planning either for the downturn we're currently in, or for the next one.

Now, since thread was titled a rant I'll throw in the final insult which really get's under my skin. Forced shutdowns. Yes, this is the company's way of minimizing that accrued liability by forcing everyone to take 2 weeks off at Christmas time, this using all their accrued vacation. You don't have any vacation accrued, you say? Oh well, what a little unpaid time off at Christmas.

Yes, in the names of productivity and competition, many good deals have gone by the wayside. If I published the details of my leave and retirement packages, you'd all want to shoot me. But, you can look at it two ways:

1. Sick leave is part of my compensation package. The company owes it to me. Not taking it would be like giving part of my pay back to the company. I'll use it whether I need it or not.

2. I'll only use my sick leave if I really need it. Hopefully, my boss will recognize my dedication and give me a bonus or a promotion.

Both of the above approaches are valid. It depends or your personal situation which one you take. If you are looking for a long-term relationship with a company and to move up the ladder, approach 2 is probably better. But, not all people are looking for that in a job anymore.

Someone's already mentioned this briefly, but handwashing is the best way to prevent these kinds of illnesses. Wash your hands often, with soap and water. If you don't have access to a restroom, use the water-less hand cleaner that has become very popular. I am a public health educater here in Georgia, and we have been doing presentations on the importance of handwashing to the schools in our health district. Proper handwashing can prevent a number of illnesses, some quite serious.

Handwashing and a flu shot are your best bet for preventing illness. Of course, if your sick co-workers would stay home, that would help tremendously as well.

RP

Get some Zicam, it's a zinc gel you snort up the ol' snoz. Grody but effective. Hope you feel better soon!

I can attest to the fact that accrued sick leave is not a bogus benefit. While burning 500 hours of sick leave while enduring surgeries and chemo therapy for lymphoma, it sure was nice not to worry about a paycheck coming in.

Now about socialized medicine - don't mentoion htis to any of my friends across the border in Canada about those "benefits" . One had to wait over 4 months to see a specialist for IBS (aaargh)