Taking time off of work when you’re sick is important and should be covered by the terms of your employment contract. That said, more often than not employees come to work when they should be at home looking after themselves for fear of being accused of ‘pulling a sickie’. The stigma that has built up around the concept of pulling a sickie is ingrained and contaminates attitudes towards absenteeism in general.
So in this blog I look at what constitutes pulling a sickie, why people do it and ask is it ever okay to pull one?
What is a Sickie?
A ‘sickie’ is time taken off work when you are not sick by pretending to be sick. There are a multitude of reasons why a person might decide not to go in to work by pulling a sickie and some of those may be justified. However, pulling a sickie generally conjurs negative conotations, so why do people do it?
Why do people pull a sickie?
The easiest response to this question would be to say a person pulls a sickie because they just don’t want to go into work. The problem with that response is that it just doesn’t answer the question.
People may pull a sickie for a multitude of reasons.
- No one at home to look after the children or other domestic responsiblity.
- Inability to face going in because unstimulated by the work.
- Inability to face going in due to bullying.
- Physically unable to go in due to activities the night before.
- Preference not to go in because of opportunity to go elsewhere.
Reasons 4 and 5 listed above are clearly not justified and will likely lead to negative consequeces placed unnecessarily on work colleagues and possibly clients or customers as a result. It may also add to tension in the workplace and the deteriation of relationships if time off is perceived as a sickie.
However, the first three reasons listed above are linked to serious issues. Its in an employers interest to allow employees to separate time off taken for these reasons from what is otherwise termed a sickie. Separating time taken off for these reasons would enable an employer to better understand and control absenteeism.
Reason 1
Family responsibilities are important and a persons ability to meet them impacts directly on their happiness. According to Oxford University, happy workers are 13% more productive so this is something that should interest employers too. Some more progressive employers will have systems in place to allow for family emergencies and responsibilities. This would mean there would be no need to pull a sickie if such a family emergency were to present itself. Promoting and supporting a good work, life balance will also make a positive difference.
Reason 2
This may seem a frivorlous reason but a monotonus, repeative and unstimulating job will, over time, affect a person’s mental health. For the employer this means an unhappy and less productive workforce and in the end that will impact the bottom line.
An employer can minimise this happening in the first place by recruiting the right people for the job. If someone is overqualified for the role there’s a chance they will not find it fulfilling. If this sounds like you, you should consider your options. Take a look at 6 steps to your ideal career part 1 and part 2, Creative job hunting for proactive professional, Creating a killer CV/Resume.
More importantly however the employer could make the mental health of his or her workforce a priority. This might involve a support system which could include a range of initiatives such as ‘staff time’ during which they can chat about whatever’s on their mind.
Some employers offer ‘duvet days’ to support staff who might otherwise pull a sickie for these reasons. While recognition of such time off for the mental wellbeing of staff is welcome, it is insufficient on its own and overly simplistic as a solution.
Employer arranged or provided activities such as fitness or other physical activities might help to build positive relationships between team members, focus the mind and release endorphines in the brain to improve mood.
Offering training and development opportunities for all staff would also enable those who feel unfulfilled by their current position. Ultimately, investing in staff skills adds value to the company with staff feeling more engaged and valued.
Reason 3
Bullying in the workplace can have a serious detrimental affect on the mental health of the person being bullied, the company culture and productivity. It is overlooked by employers more often than you might expect and on ocassion a situation can be misread to blame the victim, which adds to their trauma. It may be that training will help address these issues but a support system would be crucial if an employer is serious about addressing workplace bullying.
And finally…
So in answer to the question at the start of this blog, yes, there are unfortunately times when it is very much okay to pull a sickie. Not recognising the issues that might lead someone to pull a sickie for legitimate reasons risks making a possibly manageable issue worse. Nurturing a positive company culture in which staff feel able to sit down and talk about anything without fear or favour will make sense for an employer and employee in the end.
While pulling a sickie is unacceptale for questionable reasons such as 4 and 5 in my list above, when someone is forced to pull a sickie because of domestic responsibilities or for reasons of mental health they may risk being perceived unfairly as unreliable. The negative perception of others can lead to further stress and negative feelings compounding existing or creating mental health problems. Negative perceptions may also affect an employee’s career progression opportunities unfairly.