alternate headline: everyone sick as hell all the time now and no one with authority doing anything to address it

Why is every Canadian not entitled to sick days? The Feds could make it a criminal offense if an employer fails to provide sick days or EI could pay sick days. Just political choice.

You think it's bad now? Morale in the PS is so low and with looming job cuts; there is ZERO incentive not to take them. Why bank something that may be useless to you in 6 months?

Averages are also lower than pre pandemic. Comparing it to pandemic numbers, when few people were even leaving their homes, is weird.

That's the stupid part of the recent CBC article declaring that sick days are rising when they are actually lower than before the pandemic.

I actually think the takeaway here is different: back to office days/mandates lead to more sick time and lower overall productivity. In areas that I am familiar with, in the first couple years post-covid, sick days were dramatically lower.

Alternate alternate headline: Being forced to work in an office spreads disease forcing them to take more sick days.

Everyone is sicker because we added (BSL-3) virus to acute mix; Stats Can & @chiefscican.bsky.social have doc'd 😭 #LongCOVID impact; C19 has f**ked immune systems so everyone catches more stuff & worse; and we continue to deny all this s**t is airborne because too vain to mask, too cheap for IAQ $.

People absolutely should be able to and be required to stay home when sick, and COVID is damaging immune systems and making people long term sicker every time they get it. Both are true.

I entered the workforce in mid 1986. In total, I’ve used under 20 sick days. Maybe under 15. This isn’t a flex or a “look how tough I am” post. I’m reading this and I’m wondering two things: 1) what did I do differently; and 2) what is “normal”?

You can’t underuse (overuse) sick days. If you’re too sick to work you are. I work mostly from home. If I had to go into the office each day I would have to take sick leave sometimes. One of the younger men in our team has been off sick for a while. He is really sick. So glad we’re supporting him

Some bosses make you take a sick day when you are well enough to work from home, but don’t want to get anyone sick. Sick on your prescribed in office day but can work at home? Too bad! Take a sick day!

The definition of "Sick" has changed over the years, just like every aspect of life now has a condition attached to it. Tired- your depressed, Energetic- ADHD, etc. That being said pay increases were sacrificed for sick days so you are really using your own money.

Alternate headline: Public Servants Too Healthy

Maybe if public servants only took sick days when they are literally physically incapacitated rather than mildly symptomatic / contagious / diarrhetic, etc. we could get these sick day numbers down to respectable levels

That’s exactly right. If I’m going to get flack for asking to work from home because my face is leaking but I can still get stuff done, I’m just calling in sick instead. Weird incentive system, but ok.

I still remember the flu that ripped through the office a few years before the pandemic because a new employee was worried about calling in sick during their probationary period. If they had taken a few sick days it would have saved the several dozen days we collectively lost as we all succumbed

Imagine what’s about to be unleashed in the OPS with Ford’s “gotta keep the REITs happy” RTO edict. To quote Alberta’s brilliant Preem, the Ontario Public Service is going to “viciously” comply.

Damn those responsible public servants! By taking sick days, they prevent the spread of illness and, you know, their colleagues having to take sick days. What a dastardly group...

The best preventative Rx for a sick day is someone else using theirs.

It's crazy to think you shouldn't use time banks available to you. Especially a sick bank that you typically can't pay out otherwise

I have taken 1 sick day in 21 years. We are allowed 18 per year. I realize now how stupid I have been. It certainly is not appreciated by anyone. Not like they will give me a prize when I leave.

You are right. It is unappreciated.

In the federal government, it used to be that you would get paid out when you left the job, for sick days not taken. But that practice ended a number of years ago.