Have we become accustomed to sick days?

Recently I, Rianne van Helden, received a push notification from NU.nl on my phone: there is officially a flu epidemic. This is noticeable for me as a Labor & Health Advisor and among my clients. The number of absenteeism reports is increasing, which means that fewer and fewer colleagues are at work and more are home sick.

Since the corona pandemic, we as a society are more wary of flu-like symptoms. Whereas personnel used to come to work with a cold, they now more often choose to stay home after all. However, we have also become a lot more flexible. Working from home in case of such symptoms is, where possible, more often taken for granted where it was previously unthinkable.

But as a Labor & Health Advisor , I also see people are "used to" such absenteeism reports and are more often waved away by supervisors and employees: "It's just part of the season" or "Oh well, that was to be expected because the whole team is affected.

I see in practice that these reports are more often handled with app contact, that there is little contact in between and that the possibilities between them are barely considered. I even hear more often that at the start of the absence report it is agreed: 'Let us hear from you when you are doing better'. In my opinion this is a great shame, because despite the quantity, it is so important to keep in touch with each other and to explore the possibilities together.

Being sick is not the same as being incapacitated. After all, as manager and employee, you have a commitment to the company and it is important to be able to contribute according to your possibilities. To be able to determine this together, it is essential to keep talking with each other about the possibilities while waiting for full recovery. After all, responding to possibilities contributes positively to recovery!

First, by telephone contact between supervisor and employee at the start of absenteeism. This is the moment to discuss the situation, to offer support but also to discuss the possibilities. What obstacles do supervisor and employee see in the way of resuming work? Are there activities that can be performed at the time of absenteeism ? But above all, how can we support each other?

In doing so, also agree to maintain telephone contact during absenteeism. Every day is different, so every day different requests for help can be made or other possibilities arise. Through frequent contact, appropriate arrangements can always be made.

But remember, we are not doctors. So don't try to solve the medical problem together, look at the circumstances together and take that responsibility together. These can sometimes be quite difficult conversations, especially if this approach is a bit newer to both parties. So don't hesitate to bring your Labor & Health Advisor into this for advice, or even to have what's called a "three-way" conversation to support supervisor and employee.

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