As Many As Half of the Workforce Goes to Work Sick with Flu Despite Being Aware of the Implications

More than half of the US workforce goes to work even when they are sick with the flu, despite knowing they can spread the infection, reveals a survey.

A recently conducted survey for Staples, an office supplier company, comprised of 1500 office workers in the US, and it found that 55% of people who had the flu the previous year showed up for work.

The results of the survey clearly indicate that the majority of the workers had awareness of how they could stop the flu from spreading further, yet they did not act based on that knowledge.

The survey was conducted for Staples by a research firm by the name of Redshift Research, and the results were surprising, to say the least:

• As many as 90 percent of workers knew how they could protect themselves from the flu by washing hands regularly and eating right;
• A minimum of 54 percent of the participants were aware of the fact that flu viruses could live for as long as 3 days on any surface;
• Around 43 percent knew they are highly contagious the day before the actual symptoms of the flu appear and remain so till 5 to 7 days after falling sick.

The survey also revealed that most of the workers go to work while sick because they feel there is too much happening at the office to miss out. Half the number felt pressurized to go to work and ‘just get through it’. The remaining 25 percent didn’t think anyone else could manage to do their work if they reported sick.

It was also found that the current economic conditions and recent layoffs have instilled a sense of fear in workers. Many believe taking sick days off would adversely affect their performance, rendering them unable to reach their targets. Additionally, many companies have very strict policies regarding attendance, and people simply want to avoid meddling with the HR.

While there are some who are eyeing an opportunity of an appraisal or promotion, and they believe taking a few days off would jeopardize their goals. It is important that employers give some form of leeway to sick employees with regards to their monthly targets or goals, provided that legitimate sick leaves are taken. It is highly recommended that people sick with flu have minimal contact with other healthy people to prevent spreading the infection.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that each and every person over the age of 6 months should get a flu shot annually. Flu shots are particularly important for young children, women who are pregnant, or people aged 50 years and above along with people who suffer from chronic medical conditions as well as those who are at a greater risk of developing any type of complications from flu.