Jamie Dimon Confronted By Houston Janitor Over Low Wages

[Zalatix]

20. Going to work with a fever, eh? Allow me to explain why you're doing more harm than good.

I've got five cites to back me up when I say that you are endangering your employer's business and your coworkers.

Anyone got cites that show I'm wrong?

http://www.businessknowhow.com/manage/presenteeism.htm

In 2004, the Harvard Business Review reported on a study conducted by researchers at Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston. The study assessed the impact of twenty-eight medical conditions on workers' productivity at Lockheed Martin Corp. The findings showed that employees who came to work sick that year -- with ailments such as allergies, headaches, lower-back pain, arthritis, colds and the flu -- set the company back about $34 million. Allergies and sinus trouble led the pack with the highest losses to the company of $1.8 million.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2947637/

Presenteeism: A Public Health Hazard

"Presenteeism" occurs when an employee goes to work despite a medical illness that will prevent him or her from fully functioning at work. This problem has been well studied in the business and social science literature, and carries increased importance in the health care setting due to the risk of infectious disease transmission in vulnerable patient populations. In this manuscript, we discuss an outbreak of viral gastroenteritis in a long-term care facility and the role presenteeism played in disease transmission and extension of the outbreak. We use existing literature to point out the hazards of presenteeism in the health care sector. We will also discuss factors that may be involved in the decision to work while ill and propose policy changes that may reduce the incidence of presenteeism in health care organizations.

.....

On January 19, 2005 (day 1), three nursing home residents and one staff member at a 100-bed, two-floor urban facility developed symptoms of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea (Fig. 1). General infection control measures were reinforced, including hand hygiene education for nursing home residents and staff, contact isolation for symptomatic residents, and new surface disinfection procedures. On days 2 and 3 of the outbreak, seven more residents developed similar symptoms, as well as four additional staff. Two of these staff members reported diarrhea after arriving at work and were asked to go home after discussions with the infection control team. At this point, the public health department was notified and more restrictive measures were instituted, including closure of the dining room, suspension of group activities and outings, limitation of visitors, volunteers, and trainees, rescheduling of elective surgery and non-urgent clinic appointments, and discontinuation of new admissions. Staffing strategies were also temporarily changed so that nursing staff did not float in or out of the unit. As per policy, supervisors were instructed to refer employees with signs or symptoms of an infectious illness to Employee Health for diagnosis and determination of suitability to continue work. However, no daily systematic screening process took place to identify ill staff members at the start of their shift.

Over the course of the next 10 days, 23 residents and 18 staff developed symptoms of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea...

http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20040423/presenteeism-employees-employers

April 23, 2004 -- Employees who come to work even when they're aren't feeling well may end up costing companies more in lost productivity than their employers pay for sick days and other medical and disability benefits.

A new study shows that work slowdowns caused by illness on the job, known as "presenteeism," may account for up to 60% of employer health costs. Researchers say the findings suggest that companies may need to take another look at their health care spending.

"In this day and age where employers are hesitant to hire because of skyrocketing medical care costs, it's important to broaden the view of health costs beyond the cost of patient care," says researcher Ron Goetzel, PhD, of the Cornell University Institute for Health and Productivity Studies, in a news release.

The study showed that for some common conditions, such as allergies and headaches, on-the-job productivity losses may account for more than 80% of the employer's total health care costs.

http://www.jjkeller.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/content_home__article_2012Jan19PassitonComingtoworkwhensickcanpresentbusinessproductivityissues-012012_10151_-1_10551

Pass it on: Coming to work when sick can present business productivity issues

Coughing attacks, sneezing fits, and body aches are enough to make anyone feel miserable — but are they enough to keep a person home from work?

All too often, that’s not the case, and it’s coworkers who suffer. Feverish employees who head into the office because they’re insecure about their job or fear a loss of pay usually end up doing little more than spreading germs.

Employees who drag themselves to work when they’re sick bring “presenteeism” with them. They’re physically present at work, but they negatively impact productivity through reduced personal performance and by passing illness on to colleagues.

January and February are prime times of the year for outbreaks of presenteeism, as those months are typically the peak of the flu season. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that people with flu-like illness stay at home until at least 24 hours after the fever is gone, not everyone takes this advice.

http://www.news-medical.net/news/20090926/Contagious-diseases-more-prevalent-due-to-presenteeism.aspx

Contagious diseases more prevalent due to presenteeism

While employers may celebrate a low absenteeism rate among their employees, there may be a more serious problem if sick employees are coming to work. "Presenteeism," a new term coined for when employees work while unhealthy, may be even worse for employers and for the healthcare system, costing $160 billion annually in lost productivity, according to healthcare market research firm Kalorama Information, in its new report "The Market for Wellness Programs and Their Impact on Pharmaceutical, Diagnostic and Device Product Markets." The report also notes that presenteeism costs are one of many factors driving usage of wellness programs.

"Presenteeism is worse than a high absenteeism rate, for two reasons," said Bruce Carlson, Publisher of Kalorama Information. "Sick employees can spread contagious disease to other employees and multiply productivity loss. And they can make mistakes when they are not at the top of their game."

Indeed, Kalorama estimates that costs due to sick workers going to the office is more than double the cost of the 425 million sick days taken in 2008, an estimated $60 billion in lost productivity. The report notes multiple reasons that workers show up sick -- lack of time to see physicians, avoidance of copays and other medical costs, and loss of income. All of these are driving presenteeism. Also, in a time of economic recession, it is often the case that companies do not have back-ups for critical tasks and this contributes to the problem. Communicating sick day policies and cross-training employees can help to mitigate the trend.