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Being sick in the age of COVID...
Mar. 25th, 2022 01:33 pmI'm sick. I haven't been sick since the early days of 2020, before COVID was a thing. This used to be an annual occurrence - sinus infection for a couple days, then bronchitis for about a week. Right now I'm in the transition phase from the former to the latter.
No, it's not COVID. I have a rapid test kit, and I checked before I called in sick to work yesterday.
And that's what I really came to talk about, and what's really pissing me off today. Remember, once upon a time, when companies encouraged their employees to stay home when they're sick, to rest and get better, so they could return quickly and be productive again? To not come in and pass that cold or flu around to everyone else, and cause disruption and downtime in other departments?
Then came COVID. In the age of COVID companies had to take measures to make their employees more mobile. Working from home became the norm for so many people, and companies had to step up and provide the resources and equipment to make that possible. At the company where I work, today even the lowliest clerk on their first day has a laptop as standard issue equipment - two years ago, only managers and executives had them. As a result, while staying home when sick is still encouraged (actually, most places still require it), there is now an expectation that because we have the ability to work remotely, that we must continue to work, even when sick. Staying home to recover from an illness is becoming a thing of the past.
I'm tired (sleeping has been worse than usual).
I'm irritable (not a surprise considering I'm barely sleeping).
My sinuses are killing me and I generally feel like shit.
But here I am, sitting in my kitchen, still putting in an 8 hour day. Not because I want to, but because I'm expected to.
No, it's not COVID. I have a rapid test kit, and I checked before I called in sick to work yesterday.
And that's what I really came to talk about, and what's really pissing me off today. Remember, once upon a time, when companies encouraged their employees to stay home when they're sick, to rest and get better, so they could return quickly and be productive again? To not come in and pass that cold or flu around to everyone else, and cause disruption and downtime in other departments?
Then came COVID. In the age of COVID companies had to take measures to make their employees more mobile. Working from home became the norm for so many people, and companies had to step up and provide the resources and equipment to make that possible. At the company where I work, today even the lowliest clerk on their first day has a laptop as standard issue equipment - two years ago, only managers and executives had them. As a result, while staying home when sick is still encouraged (actually, most places still require it), there is now an expectation that because we have the ability to work remotely, that we must continue to work, even when sick. Staying home to recover from an illness is becoming a thing of the past.
I'm tired (sleeping has been worse than usual).
I'm irritable (not a surprise considering I'm barely sleeping).
My sinuses are killing me and I generally feel like shit.
But here I am, sitting in my kitchen, still putting in an 8 hour day. Not because I want to, but because I'm expected to.
