Revealed – 90% of Austrians go to work sick – Austria-News
It’s easy to get sick, especially during the cold season. Although bed rest is generally recommended, people still go to work in Austria.
Cough, runny nose, sore throat – these symptoms are occurring more and more all over Austria right now. In the event of illness, the basic recommendation is: stay at home, recover and, if you recover, go back to your professional and private activities. In the country, however, people do not seem to be sticking to it, as an online survey by the Vienna Chamber of Labor shows.
Working sick – and without a corona test
The results are alarming: 90 percent of those affected go to work sick – women (94 percent) admitted as men (80 percent). This not only has negative consequences for your own health, but also for the health of your colleagues. Among the sad leaders in the sectors in which employees have already gone to work sick are retail and the hotel and catering industry with 96 percent.
Even in times of a pandemic, people go to work with cold symptoms – and corona tests are not common in every industry. In the hotel and catering industry, for example, two-thirds of employees go to work with a cold without first being tested for Corona. This is followed by trade, commerce and the industrial sector. In the healthcare sector, too, 43 percent state that they work sick – but here people often do a test if they have symptoms.
Termination at Krakenstand?
The AK survey provides further worrying figures. Every tenth respondent was pressured by the boss to terminate the employment relationship in the event of sick leave. The inglorious leader is once again the hotel and catering industry with 21 percent, followed by transport (14 percent) and trade (12 percent). It is striking that the work pressure is very high in the first sector in particular – and people are desperately looking for staff there.
Every twelfth respondent was even eliminated without notice while on sick leave. By far the most common dismissal of sick workers – once again – is in the hospitality industry – 14 percent. From the areas of transport, traffic and trade, 10 percent report that they have been given notice of termination while on sick leave.
“Pressure Increasing”
Ines Stilling (Head of Social Affairs) from the Vienna Chamber of Labor comments on the results of the survey as follows: “The pressure in the working world is constantly increasing – this is also confirmed by the results of our online survey. (…) The most common reason for going to work sick is not wanting to let your colleagues down.
“Home office must not be abused”
The AK therefore demands:
• Protection against dismissal during sick leave (dismissal during sick leave should be able to be challenged as a prohibited motive)
• A legal regulation, due to which time off in lieu cannot be consumed during sick leave (similar to vacation)
• Home office must not be misused by employers to instruct their employees to work sick from home.