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Article Source: USA TodayNEW YORK (Reuters) — The United States lags far behind other nations in offering paid sick days, paid parental leave and other workplace benefits that proponents consider vital to public health and workers rights, according to research released Tuesday.
The eight-year study found the most economically competitive nations offer forms of paid leave to workers that the United States does not, according to researchers at Harvard University and Canada's McGill University
Many people at my job come to work sick because we don't get sick pay. Let me correct that; Union workers don't get sick pay, but salary personnel do get sick pay. It's pretty absurd to think that a person will not get sick, especially if they have small kids at the house. The kids get sick at school and get everyone in their household sick.
Just two weeks ago my area manager didn’t come to work because her kid was at home sick. And I personally don’t have a problem with that, but I do have a problem when I can’t take off to care for my sick kids, being that she gets paid for her time off and I don’t if I have to take time off to do the same thing. With influx of swine flu, these companies that don’t offer sick pay to their employees are putting workers at risk.
#1 - Wed Nov 18, 2009 9:47 AM ESTI had a few reasons that I stayed so long at the job I had that closed (almost 25 years), it wasn't because I totally loved the company, because they could be very unfair to some, they did have a union but you didn't have to be in it. (that was one of the oddest things as the state where I come from everyone was union) I did like the job I had which helped working for them an madehalf way decent pay but we worked by piece work, what we did for the day determined what we made.
But one of the most important things I liked about it was that they did understand when you were sick or your kids got sick. we got so many sick days a year paid after so long of being there, and even if they ran out as long as you were a hard worker and they felt you were not one of these people who took off for every little reason or calling in claiming to be sick and really wasn't, you were still ok. As some who had called in sick later to be seen gallivanting around town. If it hadn't been for this I would have more than likely never stayed as I did not like the treatment that some got in some situations. And said so to the point even a few times I thought I may be fired because of it.
#2 - Wed Nov 18, 2009 10:28 AM ESTOther than being off for funeral leave, I've only called off once from my job of 11 years. But even without sick days we have people who call off way too much. I understand from the company's aspect they think people will abuse the system. But that's a situation where they should deal with the individual.
Hopefully when it's time to renegotiate our next contract we will get paid sick days. I want hold my breath though.
Cuzzen - I am somewhat taken back by the pittance that your job offers.. I have never ever worked for a company that would never give sick time so I do not know how it is.. even the worse job I had gave us 1/4 day per month.. and I worked for a newspaper back in the late 50's loading trucks and unloading trucks.. talk about sick time being needed.. if your back doesn't give out you are one of the lucky ones.. I was a part timer too...
You sound like you are an employeers dream worker. It's a shame you have to worry about it if you were to get sick. I hope for you they give you some days in your next contract, as I know what a life saver they can be.
I know there are times people are sick but not so sick that they actually have to go to the doctor, but any time I did I would take a doctors statement in, and there were more taken off because of my daughter than for me.
The last couple years our plant was open they started rewarding employees that never missed. Maybe this could be brought up in your renegotiations as well.
Yeah, it's pretty pathetic Par. I've been lucky where I haven't been too sick that I need to stay home. But being that I have school age kids, I think it's a matter of time. Now that the swine flu is upon us and could have a major impact on our health, maybe most of these companies will rethink their policies towards paid sick leave.
The last couple years our plant was open they started rewarding employees that never missed. Maybe this could be brought up in your renegotiations as well.
That's surely sounds like a great idea Bea. If not anything it could show us employees that the company apprecite their workers.
You sound like you are an employeers dream worker.
I appreciate your kind words Bea, but I hardly think that I would fit under the category of "dream worker". LOL – Being that I work 12 hours (and a family to support); it would be a nice hit to my paycheck if I called off. So hence that would be the major contributing factor of me not calling off.
The companies know they can get away with it because it is an Employers market... as long as it is this way for jobs, the employee has no hold over the employer.
My longest job working high tech security .. I was responsible for around 25 people .. hiring and firing also... I could see if someone was sick.. I would allow them the time... and for some that I knew that did their jobs well.. and were there every day .. I would cut them a lot of slack... however, there was one or two that would always call in for a friday or saturday night.. and I wouldn't cut them any slack.. I would just find people to replace them when they tried for the 3rd time (3 strikes your out)...
I was a sympathetic employer at the time.. If you need time .. and you were a good worker you got it..
I really don't like how employers give employees a pool of days off--paid time off--combining sick and vacation time. My last job did this; we accrued 9.4 hours per month. A flu could easily wipe out all your time off, making it difficult to plan for vacations.
I'm all for the "if you are ill, stay home" way of doing things, and not counting the time against the employee. If more people stayed home when sick, it would reduce the number of sick in the workplace as they wouldn't be spreading their germs about. Sure, some might abuse the policy, but then you deal with them.
#3 - Wed Nov 18, 2009 12:52 PM ESTI use to work for a company in my 'real' younger days.. it was part time while I was going to 9/10th grade... small convenient store type (Mom & pop) and it was only open a certain amount of hours anyway..like 10 hours a day ... and what he did was pool the sick time.. no one would get a specific amount.. like if people didn't call in sick for a month it would total 4-5 days... there were only 3 employees .. so if we went three months say.. that would be 12-15 sick days.. If no one would use a sick day.. at the end of the year we would (3 of us) get $150.00 for each sick day taken they would deduct around 10%...
Um.....
The US is not a nanny state. The US is a frontier macho we-don't-need-no-stinkin'-health-care proud nation!
So...
No health-care, no unemployment benefits, no social-welfare net of any kind.
Hey! It ain't Europe!
#4 - Thu Nov 19, 2009 7:59 AM ESTskallywag
Nice post.
Don't expect relief from a system that tires to squeeze out as much work as possible at the lowest wages and the least benefits. Each day we see companies cutting benefits to a minimum. The goal is to do away with all benefits including paid vacations. We are closing in on that goal a warp speed.
The practice of outsourcing American jobs came about when the Cold War faded. It gave corporations the green light to send as many jobs overseas as possible to make the highest profits. Coupled with this is the importation of cheap overseas labor to fill some of the best paying jobs in this country. Our system plays its workers off against cheap labor, a situation in which we Americans will always lose. How do you complete with someone overseas making 20K per year when the same job here pays 80k? The only jobs that are safe are those of the CEO and his/her henchmen who screw the lot of us while putting even bigger profits in the pocket of useless investors who sit on their asses while America burns.
American Capitalism is in its twilight and thank heaven. Before this century is over our form of Capitalism will have completely exhausted itself and another system, hopefully a humanistic one, will arise from the former's foul ashes.
#6 - Thu Nov 19, 2009 11:03 AM ESTYou're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |
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