Jeremy Lesniak owns a small Web design firm in Randolph, Vt. He has 10 employees and hundreds of clients. Sick isn't an option.
"I have two cell phones and a pager" he said. "I have taken partial sick days or just worked from home, but I haven't had a real one in over six years."
The swine flu epidemic had employers desperately trying to keep sick workers at bay, calling into question companies that didn't. But the economic meltdown has stepped up pressure on worker bees and bosses alike to produce from home rather than heal in bed, said Dave Couper, a career coach and corporate human resources consultant in Los Angeles.
"There's an implicit requirement to be at work — partly because of the fear of losing your job if you're not there," he said. "Before, companies were OK about people being out sick. Now I don't see that as much. I've known people who have e-mailed from their hospital room or been on conference calls where they can hardly speak they're so sick. The recession has made it worse."
The self-employed — those with access to technology and connectivity anyway — and employees in small companies with fewer prospective subs really feel the squeeze with the sneeze.
Ashleigh Harris gives her San Francisco startup, which makes a new type of training wheel for kid bicycles, high marks for flex time. But with only three full-time positions, herself and the CEO included, calling in sick means work languishes.
"Things need to get done when they need to get done when it comes to building a successful startup," said Harris, the marketing director. "So if that means hopping on a conference call from my cell when I'm in bed, or sending a few key e-mails to hit deadlines, I'm more than happy to do it."
Some workers fear demerit systems for calling in sick — or they're up against policies that allow no sick pay at all. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 39 percent of private-sector employees fall into the latter category, including many millions in the service industry.
A survey of U.S. workers conducted in 2008 by the Families and Work Institute, a nonprofit research group that monitors the changing work force, found that 63 percent received at least five paid days off per year for personal illness. Low earners were much less likely to receive that number, which has been on a downward trend since 1997.
"More than half the work force says their employers call them at times when they're not supposed to be working, on a pretty regular basis," said Ellen Galinsky, the group's president and co-founder.
But even those who set their own sick policies feel crunched. Gina Kazimir has an online communications firm in Bel Air, Md., and prides herself on speedy service.
"I don't take ANY days off. Even when I had swine flu I checked e-mail at least once or twice a day — and I was so sick I could barely shower," she said. "Vacations are a challenge. I usually make sure I have some wireless access just in case."
Her availability to clients is expected, she said, "but I'm not sure that it increases productivity. It's definitely bad for being sick."
Unplugging when sick is also worse for Elie Rosenfeld in Teaneck, N.J. He heads a small niche advertising agency in nearby New York City. Not knowing what's going on at the office "would drive me nuts," he said, so he managed a few hours of work each day during a recent bout of strep.
"I don't even tell some clients that I'm away," he said. "I generally don't expect employees to be connected the way I am, but I like them to check e-mail, etc., to be sure there isn't something being missed."
The rise of mobile devices and computing systems that allow people to work remotely make it easier to keep the work flowing from sickbeds.
"What it comes down to is a need to refine corporate policy," said Cary Landis, chief executive of Virtual Global, a Morgantown, W.Va., provider of "cloud computing" systems that help employees work at home. "Managers and HR executives need to take a look at those policies to make sure that we're getting the most out of it without tying a virtual rope around people who are home sick or on vacation."
Galinsky, of the Families and Work Institute, agreed.
"Work is a marathon. We keep running harder and faster," she said. "What we know from research is that work is really much more like interval training. You need time for reset and recovery."
Life
Related Photos
-
Paul Sakuma
Is working from home the new calling in sick?
- Life
-
-
Valley experts differ on ideas for job creation
SUNBURY — When President Barack Obama gives his jobs speech Thursday night before Congress and a nation facing a 9.1 unemployment rate, he should act to lower the minimum wage and taxes, target government investments wisely, spend on long-lasting projects, or cut spending, reduce regulations and trim the size of Washington, Valley experts suggested.
-
Carbs under control
Parents with a child who has Type 1 diabetes sometimes find it difficult to let go of the important responsibility to constantly check insulin levels. Just ask Doreen Giordani, of Sunbury.
-
After the pounds come off
Bariatric surgery offers those who are 100-plus-pounds overweight a viable option for reclaiming their lives, a physician at Geisinger Medical Center noted.
-
Accreditation awarded to hospital
Sunbury Community Hospital has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for accreditation by demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission’s national standards for health care and safety in hospitals.
-
16 years old and still growing
The more things change the more they stay the same. That's what Dr. Michael Ryan, director of pediatrics at Janet Weis Children's Hospital, in Danville, said, as he discussed the 16 year anniversary of the facility.
-
Americans turn to technology to control impulses
NEW YORK — Dan Nainan can't trust himself to work at his computer without clicking on distractions, so he uses an Internet-blocking program to shut down his Web access twice a day. "I'm sorry, but try as I might, I could never, ever do this on my own," said the New York City comedian who's struggling to finish a book. "I wish I could, but I just don't have the discipline."
-
Some babyproofing basics for the new year
Babies and toddlers are curious creatures. Something captures their attention — a stuffed animal, a shiny object or a noisy rattle — and they're going after it. Just make sure they aren't chasing a teddy bear on top of a dresser, the blade of a knife or a pill bottle.
-
Texts, Web really do allow Santa to be everywhere
PHILADELPHIA — He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake, and he knows how many followers you have on Twitter.
-
In tough economy, Santas are suffering
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Craig McTavish — a.k.a. Santa — has the beard. He has the belly. He even has a few tricks up his sleeve, like pulling up to parties on his Harley-Davidson in full Kris Kringle garb. But there's one thing he doesn't have: work.
-
Soften the impact
The cold weather and snow are here, which means winter recreation enthusiasts should be armed with ways to protect themselves from traumatic head and brain injuries that are typical for the season.
- More Life Headlines
-
