Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

Lucky me. Just had to give up a day off to cover for a bloke. Was planning to MTB the Wombat forest too. That's the first of seven straight 0600 starts, sigh. Hope he enjoyed it...

Kemp wrote: If you're company allows for a certain number of sick days or personal leave days, why not take them? I don't see any problem with it

If a long-serving employee gets a terminal or other grave illness in my company and runs out
of paid sick-leave, they are often given ex-gratia sick leave (i.e. they are paid sick leave anyway).

It comes from the moneys budgeted for sick leave but not used - e.g. when
many employees retire with months or years of untaken sick leave.

If every employee began to treat sick leave as an entitlement they were
free to spend as they see fit, why would you expect an employer to show any
unrequited generosity to the seriously ill ?

Sick leave is a safety net - and if you are blessed by good health, you could think about
those less fortunate. Life isn't all about take - sometimes you've got to give a bit too.

Cheers

Nope, couldn't bring myself to do it today so I cycled to work and hubby cycled out to ride with the group.

well said WombatK

I'm too sick to ride today so I went to work.

sicks days, I get 10 a year and lose any i do not take. I tend to take them if I am feeling like I might be sick (and don't feel guilty for it). Never taken any for a ride or the like. I have taken a few mental health days, when work has gotten a bit too much for me.

I used to work in a company where sick leave kept on accumulating, I took less sick days with that company.

It annoys me when people come into work when they are sick

Well I'm going to be taking a day off sick to see dentist. Yep dentist but I'll do it in the afternoon as last time I went they tell me may need a filling sooo cycle in the morning then see dentist in arvo
Legit day off

It can depend somewhat on the nature of your job as well.

I work in a hospital, in very direct contact with a large number of patients, as well as colleagues, all day (or night) long. There are occasions when I am sick (with some trivial but bloody annoying viral URTI or gastroenteritis), and still well enough to do my job, but turning up to work and "sharing the joy" is quite definitely a _really_ dumb thing to do.

Consequently, if I have a day off under those circumstances, but feel well enough to get outdoors and do something active (albeit at a gentler pace than usual) then I'm not sure that's an intrinsically unethical or bad thing.

I do, however, still feel somewhat guilty about it.

Why don't you ask your boss for the day off let him know why, if you are a valued employee all will be good, if you aren't pulling your weight and take a sickie you may find you are next to go. I am a boss that's how I operate!
Hard bugger aren't I ?

Farmer Elvis wrote:Why don't you ask your boss for the day off let him know why, if you are a valued employee all will be good, if you aren't pulling your weight and take a sickie you may find you are next to go. I am a boss that's how I operate!
Hard bugger aren't I ?

That would be the fairest thing to do. It's not called being hard, just being up front and honest.

No way, I say. And I disagree strongly with sick leave being something that can be built into a pay package and cashed in, it should be legally provided for and evaporate if not used, IMO.

In my job, a day off means hiring a temp replacement at circa $300/day and potentially lowered outcomes for my stakeholders.

I was sick for three days this week, and on Sunday night. I did go to work Monday and faded away in the afternoon. Spent Tuesday and Wednesday resting and taking tonnes of vitamin C and other immune defense type tablets trying to get better. They worked!

I'm the type that only takes sick leave when I'm actually sick. I don't do it otherwise.

I think it depends upon your job, basically whether or not you have appointments. I used to do it all the time when I lived in the States. My reasoning was simple but it had to be on a day when it wasn't important for me to be there. I was working in an Engineering Dept. for a local gov't. My logic was that if I took good enough care of myself (and I still do) that I don't get sick, then I should not be punished. I used to go skiing but had to be careful not to get 'raccoon eyes'

living up here in darwin i see most people have sick days usually for family events, especially in dry season.

I know I had to go to sydney in feb for my nannas 90th, and had to take 3 days off work, but i was honest with work and they said it was cool. I also took one day off when my parents came up here. work were cool with that too.

in saying that, ive only had one other sick day off where i was actually sick.

Ive taken many personal days over the years, but in my eyes, every one justifiable. And every single one, work was notified of my reason first. I figure if you have a good relationship with the boss and dont abuse the system, its fine.

in saying that, i wouldnt take a day off just to ride.

I feel guilty if I take the day off to look after a sick child, but feel well myself. I do however get RDOs and usually have one or two saved and can take them at shortish notice, when work is quiet, or no appointments etc. Many moons ago (different job) I rode to work on a glorious day, found there was nothing much going on, called RDO, left and went and enjoyed the sunshine for the day. Could probably do that now but prefer to give some notice.

Sickies are for when you are sick. I have a mate in hospital at the moment with pneumonia who will get back to work with no sickies left, but he won't lose much pay because he is generally healthy and doesn't waste sickies.

Sick leave can also be used to take time off to care for an ill child. So no reason to feel guilty as that is what they are for.

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skull wrote:Sick leave can also be used to take time off to care for an ill child. So no reason to feel guilty as that is what they are for.

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So if my "child" is feeling neglected, and needs to be taken on a long tour, it's OK to chuck a sickie?

I chuck sickies to ride all the time. I don't think it makes any difference to the company or my "workmates" and if it did I wouldn't care I ran out of sick pay years ago and annual leave so it doesn't cost them anything. It's not that I'm lazy, I even chuck sickies to do volunteer work. I work for a massive corperation, it's not a person, it doesn't care about me and I don't care about it. I think people oppose the practice out of some holier than thou, moraly pre programmed sheep mentality. At the end of my my life I'll be extreemly satisfied about the time I wasn't at work and even happier that I didn't make some rich invester richer. So I think its ok to chuck a sickie to ride and even unaustralian not to.

skull wrote:Sick leave can also be used to take time off to care for an ill child. So no reason to feel guilty as that is what they are for.

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I am aware, buy my point was that I don't feel right taking time off as sick leave unless I am sick, and properly.

I agree there is a bit of a distinction between a sickie (but not sick) and a sick leave day (actually sick).

thecaptn wrote:I chuck sickies to ride all the time. I don't think it makes any difference to the company or my "workmates" and if it did I wouldn't care I ran out of sick pay years ago and annual leave so it doesn't cost them anything. It's not that I'm lazy, I even chuck sickies to do volunteer work. I work for a massive corperation, it's not a person, it doesn't care about me and I don't care about it. I think people oppose the practice out of some holier than thou, moraly pre programmed sheep mentality. At the end of my my life I'll be extreemly satisfied about the time I wasn't at work and even happier that I didn't make some rich invester richer. So I think its ok to chuck a sickie to ride and even unaustralian not to.

I disagree

Personally I oppose it because I believe in honesty and a fair go - which means not fibbing to the boss or leaving my colleagues in the lurch because I just didn't feel like coming into work...

m@ wrote:

thecaptn wrote:I chuck sickies to ride all the time. I don't think it makes any difference to the company or my "workmates" and if it did I wouldn't care I ran out of sick pay years ago and annual leave so it doesn't cost them anything. It's not that I'm lazy, I even chuck sickies to do volunteer work. I work for a massive corperation, it's not a person, it doesn't care about me and I don't care about it. I think people oppose the practice out of some holier than thou, moraly pre programmed sheep mentality. At the end of my my life I'll be extreemly satisfied about the time I wasn't at work and even happier that I didn't make some rich invester richer. So I think its ok to chuck a sickie to ride and even unaustralian not to.

I disagree

Personally I oppose it because I believe in honesty and a fair go - which means not fibbing to the boss or leaving my colleagues in the lurch because I just didn't feel like coming into work...

You make a good point but the company I work for doesn't have a good track record when it comes to honesty or giving staff a fair go. Also as I said, on my pay level which is the lowest, it realy doesn't cause anyone bar management any grief. On the contrary, if I'm not at work it means that overtime will be offered and those of us who have young families and mortgages can take the oppertunity to make some extra money.

thecaptn wrote:

m@ wrote:

thecaptn wrote:I chuck sickies to ride all the time. I don't think it makes any difference to the company or my "workmates" and if it did I wouldn't care I ran out of sick pay years ago and annual leave so it doesn't cost them anything. It's not that I'm lazy, I even chuck sickies to do volunteer work. I work for a massive corperation, it's not a person, it doesn't care about me and I don't care about it. I think people oppose the practice out of some holier than thou, moraly pre programmed sheep mentality. At the end of my my life I'll be extreemly satisfied about the time I wasn't at work and even happier that I didn't make some rich invester richer. So I think its ok to chuck a sickie to ride and even unaustralian not to.

I disagree

Personally I oppose it because I believe in honesty and a fair go - which means not fibbing to the boss or leaving my colleagues in the lurch because I just didn't feel like coming into work...

You make a good point but the company I work for doesn't have a good track record when it comes to honesty or giving staff a fair go. Also as I said, on my pay level which is the lowest, it realy doesn't cause anyone bar management any grief. On the contrary, if I'm not at work it means that overtime will be offered and those of us who have young families and
mortgages can take the oppertunity to make some extra money.

You won't be complaining when you are the next in your work to be told "don't come Monday" !

Yeah they cant do that mate, it's the 21st century

thecaptn wrote:Yeah they cant do that mate, it's the 21st century

And a bloody shame it is.

thecaptn wrote:I chuck sickies to ride all the time. I don't think it makes any difference to the company or my "workmates" and if it did I wouldn't care I ran out of sick pay years ago and annual leave so it doesn't cost them anything. It's not that I'm lazy, I even chuck sickies to do volunteer work. I work for a massive corperation, it's not a person, it doesn't care about me and I don't care about it. I think people oppose the practice out of some holier than thou, moraly pre programmed sheep mentality. At the end of my my life I'll be extreemly satisfied about the time I wasn't at work and even happier that I didn't make some rich invester richer. So I think its ok to chuck a sickie to ride and even unaustralian not to.

I wouldn't call it laziness, I would more lean towards poor attitude and poor work ethic. Each to their own, but l like to put in 100% each day, regardless if l am at the bottom of the ladder or not. Your job must mean something to someone, because if it didn't you wouldn't be working as it, and they wouldn't have it as a position if it wasn't needed. If they do, then that's bad business IMO.