Falling ill is not fun for many many reasons, missing work being only one of them. And while staying on the couch instead of going to work might not sound like a big problem, it typically entails other—way more significant—inconveniences, too.
Redditor ‘Wolfslash16’ recentlyshared an emailtheir buddy received after one of their colleagues encountered health-related problems. The company asked its employees to donate PTO days to help the poor personrecover, which sparked a discussion on who should take care of an employee in such a situation. Scroll down to find the full story below.
Below you will also findBored Panda’sinterview with Professor at FAU Phyllis & Harvey Sandler School of Social Work at Florida Atlantic University,LeaAnne DeRigne, who was kind enough to answer a few of our questions regarding the importance of paid sick leave.
Health problems tend to affect not only one’s personal but professional life, too
Image credits:Mikhail Nilov / Pexels (not the actual photo)
This company asked its employees to help out a fellow colleague on their way to recovery
Image credits:Wolfslash16
Offering paid time off can actually benefit the company
According to Prof. LeaAnne DeRigne, it’s very important for employees to have access to generoustime offto care for acute and chronic illnesses. “Most employees can’t afford to be off work without pay if they are put into that position, they become unable to afford needed healthcare. It’s a vicious cycle,” she told Bored Panda in a recent interview.
“Paid time off allows employees to stay home when they are sick, thus not spreading contagion and illness atwork, and allows employees to access preventative health care appointments such as cancer screenings and vaccines,” Prof. DeRigne emphasized.
PTO donation campaigns are not equally common everywhere
Image credits:Andrea Piacquadio / Pexels (not the actual photo)
According to Prof. LeaAnne DeRigne, such PTO donation campaigns like the one the redditor discussed are not equally common among companies. “It’s common at larger organizations that provide generous paid time off packages to all their employees when there may be a sick leave pool that has many days in it already,” she told Bored Panda. “It is not common at smaller companies or places that offer only a limited number of days off.”
Some redditors had firsthand experience with similar situations
Thanks! Check out the results:Indrė Lukošiūtė
Justinas Keturka
Gabija Saveiskyte
Work & Money
