Workplace Courtesy: As if they don’t have enough to worry about, cold sufferers
now have to concern themselves with how they are perceived by co-workers.
According to research by Boots, a health and beauty aids retailer based in
Nottingham, England, nearly half of employees (47 percent) say people with colds
should stay home and recover, but
one-third suspect that people use sick time as an excuse for getting out of
work. The mixed signals are blamed for causing many British workers (about 56
percent) to never take time off to rest up and recover, according to Boots.
Also, while people tolerate coughing and nose blowing, 48 percent find it
particularly irksome when co-workers don’t cover their mouths. And nearly one in
four workers expressed annoyance at flu-ridden colleagues who sniffle
continually.
Workforce Management contributing editor Garry Kranz is based in Richmond, Virginia. E-mail editors@workforce.com to comment.
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