‘Hard to Call in Sick’: A Waitress, a Teacher, and a Hybrid Worker on Presenteeism Pressure

“SA report has found that the level of ‘tagging’ presenteeism in the UK has led to workers losing the equivalent of 44 days of productivity on average due to working while sick and therefore not performing at their best, compared to 35 days in 2018.

Workers in the UK are among the least likely to take sick days, especially compared with other OECD and European countries, experts say. Presenteeism can prolong workers’ recovery, increase the risk of more serious illness later on and spread infectious diseases to others – all of which can affect overall productivity, report from the Institute for Public Policy Research found it.

With statutory sick pay in the UK lagging behind most other European countries, staff shortages and pressure from employers, three workers explain why calling in sick can be a challenge.

The waitress: ‘If you don’t come in, I don’t get paid’

For those in precarious jobs, the pressure to work while sick is greater. As one waitress in Bristol told the Guardian: “I don’t get paid if I don’t go to work, so I have no choice. I’ve never had a day off sick in two years and I wouldn’t.” She said she had been working in the restaurant while she had a fever.

The part-time hospitality worker, 42, said she was only entitled to statutory sick pay – £116.75 a week, which kicks in after three days off work. “Given the cost of living, it’s really tight. I have to work a certain number of hours to get my childcare tax credit,” she said, referring to the government’s tax-free childcare scheme, which is dependent on parents earning a certain amount.

But in addition to the financial pressure, the waitress said she also works when she’s sick, so she doesn’t let the team down during busy shifts. “There’s no cover because restaurants are on the brink of collapse. You work as a team; if people don’t show up, you get in trouble.”

The spread of germs is almost inevitable, as customers also bring their coughs and colds, she noted: “I don’t want to make others sick — but no one thinks about not coming to the restaurant if they’re sick. Even after Covid, people don’t really think about it. I’m sick now and I know it’s because of my job.”

Teacher: ‘The school deliberately makes it difficult to report sick’

Others said they took time off when they were ill, despite pressure to come. In Norfolk, a 32-year-old secondary school teacher said: “If I’m ill, I’m entitled to a sick day. If I’m feeling well enough, I’ll go, but as a teacher it’s really hard to teach six hours to 30 different children an hour if you’re not feeling well.”

But she explained that her school—and others she’s worked at—have policies that can act as barriers to getting time off when needed. “They make the process of calling in sick very difficult,” she said. “You have to call the school before 6:30 a.m. and give them a day’s worth of classes scheduled before that time. Often, the school will turn off their answering machine.”

She said many other teachers avoid taking sick leave “until they are eventually written off the job due to exhaustion or stress-related illness.” When teachers do have to take time off, the grading and lesson planning tasks pile up before they return, she added.

“There is an attitude of perseverance among teachers that I find toxic. If we were all ill when we were unwell, the education system would have to take stock and assess why teachers are experiencing more stress and stress-related illness.”

The hybrid worker: ‘The new normal means if you’re sick, you’re expected to work remotely’

For employees who can work remotely, the bar for sick leave appears to have been raised in some workplaces. One hybrid worker said that before the pandemic, staff in his office were told not to work if they were sick to avoid spreading germs, but that the option to work from home has changed that.

“The new normal now is to stay home and work when you’re sick, unless it’s something really serious… like a fallen leg,” said a 37-year-old project manager in Birmingham, who added that workers were paid their full salary when they were sick.

Under this new system, the hybrid employee, who has to work in the office three days a week, added: “I definitely take fewer sick days now. There have been days when I’ve worked from home when I was sick and I don’t remember what I did. I don’t think it’s very conducive to a good work environment. It’s presentism that causes it.”

Work pressure is another reason he doesn’t take sick days. While he admitted he was less productive when he was sick, the project manager said taking time off means his work piles up. “We have a very tight workforce. If things pile up when I’m not at work, I pay the price after work.”

Working while sick extends your recovery time, he added – and that catches up with you. “What happens is you tend to muddle through until your annual leave – and then you’re sick for the first few days of that.”