Flu prevention is smart, but many PTO policies don’t support it: Does yours?
October 9, 2009 by Christian SchappelPosted in: Communication, In this week's e-newsletter - benefits, Latest News & Views, Pay and benefits
Paid-time-off (PTO) policies work great when trying to control absences for sick or vacationing workers. But they tend to fall short when it comes to keeping sick workers from spreading illnesses among co-workers.
There have been dozens of news stories recently (like this one that just appeared on the front of the Chicago Tribune’s Business Section) about how companies and their workforces should prepare for a rash of flu absences this season.
The advice for employees is mostly common sense – cover your mouth when you sneeze, stay home until you are symptom-free, etc.
But the reality is, messages like “stay home when you’re sick” can’t be successful if company policies don’t support them.
Example: Many companies have moved from separate sick, holiday and vacation banks to PTO banks. They are a great way to promote flexibility, but they also may encourage employees to come into the office when they’re sick.
Think about it: Would you rather work with a minor cough or lose a day from your summer vacation at the beach? Most employees will choose the former.
Or perhaps recent furloughs have drained people’s PTO. If so, chances are slim they’d take a day off if it means taking a pay cut.
Tags: Chicago Tribune, flu, paid time off, PTO bank
October 15th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
We just added 5 extra “flu” days to our policy. However, there are some guidelines to using these days. You will be paid for these days but they must be taken consecutively and must return to work with a doctor’s note stating that you were under their care for the flu. The Dr.’s note is to deter self diagnosis, consecutive is because the flu lasts for 3-10 days and we do not want “sick” employees coming to work. This will be the first time we’ve tryed this type of policy, hopefully no one has to use it.
October 15th, 2009 at 2:28 pm
We are having a company sponsored voluntary flu shot day. Its no cost if you are enrolled in our Medical plan, and $25 if you aren’t. But its done right here in the office, so one misses a day to get the shot, and almost everyone is doing it. We have put hand sanitizer everywhere and the cleaning staff is paying more attention to door knobs, phones, keyboards and mice.