Have you ever felt sick and still went to work because you felt that you were not allowed to get sick or
that you had too much work and didn’t have time to get sick?
Sometimes employees tend to push themselves beyond their limits. These types of people are very
honest people who work very hard and are worried about the impact of their absence at work.
As an employee, you have to know when to take a break. I am not talking about having a small headache
or something similar. You might have a chronic illness or you might have a temporary health problem
and you have been putting off the doctor visit, the blood tests, the MRI, the surgery or whatever needs
to be done. What I am trying to say is you have to know when to STOP and just do what has to be done.
You know very well that you are not going to be productive while you are thinking about your health
issue or while you are in pain. So why not stop? Article 235 in the labour law says that when you are
absent due to illness, it is not deducted from your annual leave.
So that is one thing you do not have to worry about.
One piece of advice. BE PROFESSIONAL ABOUT IT. Article 271 says that any employee who is sick or gets
into an accident has to inform the employer within 48 hours. I am sure you can do that. Right? Keep in
mind that your employer can send a doctor to check up on you and it is fine. They are allowed according
to the same article. UNLESS you have something to hide…
Article 273 says that absences due to illness are not paid by the employer. In this case, they are paid by
the CNSS social insurance office. Unfortunately, if your salary is over 6000 dhs net per month, the
reimbursement is a very small percentage of your salary. Some companies are very flexible with their
employees and do not deduct the sick leave absences from the salaries no matter how many sick leave
days are taken per year. Other companies have a certain number of paid sick leave days per year and
any extra days are unpaid. Your responsibility is to be honest. I know that some people pretend to be
sick but be nice. Your company is being flexible so the least you can do is use the sick leave days when
you are ACTUALLY SICK.
Employees have the company’s future in their hands. Their job is to have integrity and do their work
honestly. They also have a responsibility towards their health. They need to take time to heal if they are
not well so they can continue to be productive.
Companies sometimes have a very fast paced environment but managers have to be understanding in
such cases of illness because it is something that cannot be controlled if it happens. ANYONE and
EVERYONE can get sick ANYTIME and NO ONE wants to. Also, asking an employee to work from home
when they are sick is just not possible sometimes.
Last but not least, employees should care about their work and their health. Companies should think
about their objectives while keeping in mind that it is their employees who will help them achieve those
objectives and ONLY if their health is ok.
Do you agree?
