MsElui

the sick bank doesnt really apply to jobs ive had in the UK (ive never even heard of the concept before this thread). My last job gave me 3 months sick pay in a rolling 12 months period - after something like 6 months eligibility. I may have used 1 or 2 days a year max so i always had plenty - and unless you had something 'dire' then 3 months was usually enough. And after 3 months (which grew in amount with years service) the company had discretion to continue to pay or not.

I actually managed a woman who burned through her 3 months worth in dribs and drabs - ie she didnt have a serious illness in one hit - she had odd days off all the time. We declined to pay her any more sick pay when she hit her 3 months limit as it was felt she not sick a lot of the time - and was using it for child care, days out, waiting in for contractors, duvet days etc. She had to take unpaid sick days until she hit a point where she had taken less than 90 days in the previous 12 months. Ive never heard of other employees hitting their limit except in a case like a serious illness where the company decided to keep paying.

AmerLisa

the giant sick pay fairy....

Steerpike

Don't you mean PTO then ? PTO is a combo of 'vacation' and 'sick'. My company converted from vacation+sick (2+2 weeks) over to 3 weeks PTO; the idea being, you get 3 'guaranteed' weeks rather than two 'guaranteed' and 2 'only if sick'. For me, having only taken a handful of 'sick' days in my life, the 3 weeks 'guaranteed' PTO is a plus.
FYI, that is not legal in California. My company (CA based) was just taken over by an AZ based company and this was a big discussion topic- the AZ head office has a 'use it or lose it' policy, requiring you to use all your vacation by year end, but they could not impose that on us. CA also has a pretty high 'SDI' tax (state disability insurance, I believe) that provides the short term disability coverage lacking in other states. I mention this mainly because some of the earlier chatter in this thread was about how Texas was no different from the rest of the country; CA has several "employee friendly" laws.

Bluegrass Lass

Nope, it is not PTO, it is for vacation only. If I request time off for a doctor's appt, or get my license renewed, etc that is personal time not vacation. I've never been told a limit on how many personal hours I'm allowed. Since I'm salary, that's one of the supposed 'benefits' because my hours can be somewhat flexible. But I don't view it as such because the extra time that I put in all the time does not give me any additional compensation, and all the extra time I already put in does not go towards any personal time. So, tbh, being salaried really bites ass.

So right now, I have no more vacay (because the company forced us to take a week, after we had already planned a 2 week holiday), but I can still use personal time for doctor's appts and what not. But asking for personal is seen in a pretty negative light at my co & I hate asking for it. Perhaps there is a limit on personal time, and I've just never been told (since HR is not so good at communication anymore).

AmerLisa

There is no debate over what I experienced and its invasion of my privacy. Its not a here versus there debate. Do you need it to always be that way? Also, the fact that you can't accept it as an invasion of someone's privacy is your problem.

srah

Giantaxe

Very convincing argument! Not.

Is it also an invasion of one's privacy that you are required to allow a doctor to release information to an insurer on your illness if you wish the insurer to pay for the cost of seeing the doctor? Or should the insurer just pay the bill regardless?

Giantaxe

I think the giant sick pay fairy is too busy paying sick pay to people who think it's an invasion of privacy to be questioned about their illness.

Steerpike

I think you are on a PTO plan but it hasn't been explained to you properly yet!

I've been salaried for the last 25 years here, and have always had either 'vacation+sick' (typically starting at 2+2), or 'PTO' (personal time off) which is typically 3 weeks. In both cases, I get the 'personal time' that you describe over and above the rest - typically expected to be used for 1-4 hours here and there.

Even if they don't call it PTO, if they don't have a separate plan for 'sick', then it is PTO by definition.

AmerLisa

Why must you go further with the original point?

AmerLisa

SarahG

I currently work as a Civil Servant in the UK and if I have any time off ill I have to complete a sickness form and have a "back to work interview" where I am asked, in a totally non condescending way of course, how I am feeling and if I am sure I am ready to be back at work. If I were to have more than 10 days sick in a year then I would be referred to a work doctor to see if there was any 'underlying' cause for my illness. I have had a grand total of 6 days sick in the nearly 10 years I have worked for HMCS and last time I had half a day off sick I was made to feel so guilty for taking the time off when I had my back to work interview. I will admit I am looking forward to being on a H4 visa and not having to deal with that kind of thing for a while!

crg

At an old job, the boss asked a coworker of mine about his use of sick leave. The employee pointed out that he used less sick time than the boss. The boss stated "I have kids, and kids get sick". The employee responded with "you can't hold that against me, I don't even know your wife".

Another boss who often busted employee's chops about sick leave fell off of a ladder at his home and ended up in the hospital. He had to take a couple days and then drag his battered and bruised body into work while still in a sling and a cane.

SpoogleDrummer

That's odd. I was a Civil Servant up until my move 2 years ago and if I had time off sick all I did was put in an adjustment for the flexi system so it didn't say I was 7 hours 24 minutes down for that day. There were no interviews for me, guess it depends on what part you work for.

SarahG

We only started using flexi system last year! I work for Courts Service unfortunately but I am counting down the days till I can leave!