The H1N1 virus is in 48 of the 50 states and has already infected as many as 5.7 million Americans. To stop this epidemic, the Center for Disease Control has advised employees to stay home until 24 hours after their flu-like symptoms disappear. But, times are tough. The country’s unemployment rate is at a staggering 10.2%. Approximately a half million employees are added to the unemployment rolls every month. It is extremely difficult to get back into the workforce once employees lose their jobs. Is it realistic to think that employees will risk their jobs in this difficult economy to stay home and get well?
The National Labor Committee (a workers advocacy group) strongly criticized Wal-Mart a couple weeks ago, claiming that Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy makes it difficult for its employees to stay home when they are sick. Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy states that employees will not be paid for the first day they call in sick unless the employee uses a personal day or a vacation day. The sick leave policy also assigns points to employees who miss work because of illness and provides for termination if an employee is absent because of illness more than four times in a six month period. Some Wal-Mart employees commented that they went to work when they were sick because they feared what would happen if they missed work. Wal-Mart’s response was that it encourages its employees to stay home if they or their children are sick.
Wal-Mart also issued a memorandum to its human resources employees stating “We need to be clear that no one will lose their jobs if they get H1N1.” That memorandum is a start, but it does not solve the problem. The problem is employees are afraid or cannot afford to stay home if they get sick. Wal-Mart’s memorandum does not remedy the fact that employees feel pressure to come to work sick because they are not paid for their first sick day. And, Wal-Mart’s memorandum does not remedy the fact that employees feel pressure to come to work sick because they do not want to accumulate negative points under Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy.
While the media and bloggers are criticizing Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy, we must not forget that inadequate or problematic sick leave is not limited to Wal-Mart. The Department of Labor estimates that 51 million workers do not have access to paid sick leave. In a Public Welfare Foundation survey conducted last year, one in six workers said that they or a family member has been terminated, suspended, punished, or threatened for staying home sick or caring for a sick relative. Inadequate sick leave is a huge problem that extends beyond the world’s largest retailer and beyond any particular industry.
Worker’s groups and women’s groups have begun pressuring Congress to enact legislation guaranteeing paid sick days. Last week, Congress introduced the “Emergency Influenza Containment Act” to “ensure that American workers are able to follow, without financial harm, the recommendations of their employer and public health authorities to stay home when they have symptoms of a contagious disease that may put coworkers, customers, or the public at risk.” The Act would do the following if it becomes law:
The National Labor Committee (a workers advocacy group) strongly criticized Wal-Mart a couple weeks ago, claiming that Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy makes it difficult for its employees to stay home when they are sick. Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy states that employees will not be paid for the first day they call in sick unless the employee uses a personal day or a vacation day. The sick leave policy also assigns points to employees who miss work because of illness and provides for termination if an employee is absent because of illness more than four times in a six month period. Some Wal-Mart employees commented that they went to work when they were sick because they feared what would happen if they missed work. Wal-Mart’s response was that it encourages its employees to stay home if they or their children are sick.
Wal-Mart also issued a memorandum to its human resources employees stating “We need to be clear that no one will lose their jobs if they get H1N1.” That memorandum is a start, but it does not solve the problem. The problem is employees are afraid or cannot afford to stay home if they get sick. Wal-Mart’s memorandum does not remedy the fact that employees feel pressure to come to work sick because they are not paid for their first sick day. And, Wal-Mart’s memorandum does not remedy the fact that employees feel pressure to come to work sick because they do not want to accumulate negative points under Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy.
While the media and bloggers are criticizing Wal-Mart’s sick leave policy, we must not forget that inadequate or problematic sick leave is not limited to Wal-Mart. The Department of Labor estimates that 51 million workers do not have access to paid sick leave. In a Public Welfare Foundation survey conducted last year, one in six workers said that they or a family member has been terminated, suspended, punished, or threatened for staying home sick or caring for a sick relative. Inadequate sick leave is a huge problem that extends beyond the world’s largest retailer and beyond any particular industry.
Worker’s groups and women’s groups have begun pressuring Congress to enact legislation guaranteeing paid sick days. Last week, Congress introduced the “Emergency Influenza Containment Act” to “ensure that American workers are able to follow, without financial harm, the recommendations of their employer and public health authorities to stay home when they have symptoms of a contagious disease that may put coworkers, customers, or the public at risk.” The Act would do the following if it becomes law:
- Employers with 15 or more employees must provide a maximum of five days of paid sick leave over a twelve month period.
- The Act covers full time employees and part time employees.
- The Act only covers employees who are sent home or advised to stay home by their employers. The Act does not cover employees who decide on their own to stay home.
- Employers can end the sick leave if they believe the employee is well enough to return to work.
- Employees can continue on unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act or other existing sick leave policy when they exhaust their sick leave under the Act.
- The Act prohibits employees from being terminated, disciplined, or retaliated against because they followed their employer’s direction to stay home because of a contagious illness.
- The Act would take effect 15 days after being signed into law.
There are experts who say that the Emergency Influenza Containment Act does not solve the problem. The Act only covers employees who are sent home or instructed to stay home by their employers. Consequently, an employee may go to work sick (thereby exposing his or her coworkers to contagious disease) to attempt to get coverage under the Act which would defeat the Act’s purpose. The Act also does not consider that employers may not send their employees home or instruct their employees to stay home which means those employees would not be covered by the Act. There does not seem to be an easy solution. But, should employees have to choose between their health (and that of their coworkers and the public) and their jobs?
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