# How often do you call in sick to work and how many of those days are you actually "sick"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 19, 2010, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545 "2010-01-19T11:19:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/41 "2010-01-19T17:46:31Z")
If I call in sick, I’m sick. ---
**Author:** ![brendon\_small](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brendon_small/32/17101_2.png) [@brendon\_small](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brendon_small)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/42 "2010-01-19T17:54:41Z")
I graduated college in 2008 and started a “real job” - prior to that I hadn’t called in sick more than once in two years. - and that was the night my son was born, so I took a night off… I worked from May 2008 until August 2009 at one job, used one sick day (and let my boss know the day before) because we were closing on the house we were buying and I couldn’t make it a half-day due to schedules. I also missed one day because we were in a level 3 snow emergency and had no electricity, but when I called in, they told me they had given us the day due to snow any ways. I have called in one day here, but I was pretty sick, and my theory was that I was sick and should not come in to a classroom full of kids and get them all sick, especially when they are graded on attendance as well as performance. Other than that, I dislike calling in altogether - fortunately, my current job is really giving on personal leave time (upwards of 4-5 weeks per year for sick/vacation). Brendon Small ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/43 "2010-01-19T18:17:25Z")
I’ve never taken a purely “mental health day.” If I call in sick, I’m sick or otherwise not functional. It’s not always something contagious, though - it could be something like a) having been up half the night with an asthma attack, and even though I can breathe by morning, I’ve had no sleep and shouldn’t be working on stuff that could really screw up someone’s life if done wrong; b) wicked chronic insomnia and/or Ambien side effects, such that I am still groggy enough that I am crashing into things by morning; c) bronchitis that shouldn’t be contagious anymore with the drugs, but being asthmatic, I am still hacking up a lung. I am stingy with my sick days - we only get 4 a year, and they don’t roll over (which I think is stupid - it gives people no incentive not to call in “sick.”) But one good round of bronchitis could wipe them out. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/44 "2010-01-19T18:24:12Z")
> [@Eva\_Luna](#): > > I am stingy with my sick days - we only get 4 a year, and they don’t roll over (which I think is stupid - it gives people no incentive not to call in “sick.”) But one good round of bronchitis could wipe them out. Not only that, but you set yourself up for a situation where people will call in sick on the last week of the year. We had a situation like that a number of years ago - “everybody” called in sick and there was nothing in the P&P manual about documentation (note from doctor, etc). ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/45 "2010-01-19T18:24:51Z")
I get sick enough to miss work about 3 times a year. My employer doesn’t distinguish between sick, vacation, and personal time - it’s all considered “Paid Time Off”, so there’s no reason to claim I’m sick if I’m not. ---
**Author:** ![dhkendall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9adbd/32.png) [@dhkendall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dhkendall)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/46 "2010-01-19T18:38:00Z")
I got an award at work for zero sick days in 2008 last year (big thing around here, as I can rely on at least one person being sick every day, especially if it’s a Monday or a Friday). As luck would have it, I got sick for one day in February 2009 ☹ every time I take a sick day I always get regrets over calling in sick, especially when I feel better midway through the day. Most recent sick day (well, more like a “personal” day) was last week when I arrived home from drama practice to get a message that my wife was in hospital and was hit by a car! :eek: First thing I did (after I phoned the cab) was to tell work I wasn’t coming in tomorrow, giving them the very few details I knew, and left it at that. When I got there, turned out it wasn’t that serious and, aside form aches and pains, she was fine. In fact _she_ went into work the next day (being an on-call substitute filling in for someone who was on a week of vacation, I supose it made sense) I felt guilty little old healthy me not looking after my injured wife at home like I expected to be doing when I called in. Next day at work I told them everything was fine while leaving out the detail of her going to work. :o ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/47 "2010-01-19T19:12:15Z")
Last several years 3-4 days per year. We get ten days a year and two or less in a six month period is considered “good” and will get you an offer to buy back one or two days for cash. More than that is not a crushing issue unless it becomes a pattern and you have no medical excuse. In years past I would take the occasional “mental health day,” but I now accumulate enough vacation that augmenting it with sick leave isn’t necessary. But I don’t go to work sick and don’t look with much admiration at those that do _at my job_ ( I try not to judge folks in different situations ). Pretty much any cold=sinus issues=little or no sleep for Tamerlane=no work, far as I’m concerned. Sick leave exists for a reason and I have no hesitation about using it ( nor is my boss an asshole about it, thankfully ). However those with long views at my job like to accumulate sick leave when possible as you can max out at 1040 hours and at retirement this is doubled and added to “time served,” functionally adding up to an additional year of retirement credit. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/48 "2010-01-19T20:38:02Z")
I’ve never worked in a place where they gave you a set number of sick days, so I’ve never called in sick when I wasn’t. My vacation is pretty flexible, so there is no need. Like others, unless I’m really, really sick I keep up with email etc. And I get colds and such very rarely, and they always seem to happen on weekends. Back when it was considered a good idea, I was in the 100% attendance club for a couple of years. Just from being healthy, not from coming in when I was sick - the reward wasn’t all that great. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/49 "2010-01-19T20:47:16Z")
About once a quarter my rectal myopia will flare up and I’ll have to take a sick day. Usually somewhere in the middle of a stretch where, due to tournaments, I don’t have any weekends. ---
**Author:** ![Mahna\_Mahna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Mahna\_Mahna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahna_Mahna)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/50 "2010-01-19T20:56:55Z")
I picked other, because I only call in sick when I’m genuinely sick, which falls somewhere between “once a year” and “never”. I’ve been with my current employer for over seven years, and in that time I’ve taken a total of 5 sick days - three of which were taken consecutively when I was working in the call centre and lost my voice. It’s not that I never get sick, but I guess I’m just (un)lucky enough to get sick during weekends or holidays more than I do during workdays. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/51 "2010-01-19T21:07:06Z")
Never. I’ve never called in sick to work and at my current company I would never think of saying I was when I wasn’t. We get 2 weeks of paid time off to use for whatever we want. If I had something I wanted to do one day, I would just ask for it off, there’s no reason to lie. ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/52 "2010-01-19T23:32:15Z")
> [@Poysyn](#): > > I am a migraineur and I get them often. I never call in sick when I am not sick because I need to save those times for when I have a migraine… This is me. I probably take a day every 6 weeks or so. I only call in sick when I am in too much pain (or too nauseated, or too dizzy) to do much of anything. I come into the office with low-grade migraine very frequently, but when it gets bad enough that I stay home, I’m physically incapable of doing much of anything at all, except for resting. Sometimes it’s taken a while for co-workers to get this - some places they would call me when I was home sick with a migraine. I’m not just home cause I “don’t feel good.” I can’t recall taking a sick day when I wasn’t sick in many years, cause I need to save them for when I need them Of course, more and more places don’t have sick time separate from vacation time, which I hate. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/53 "2010-01-20T00:08:09Z")
About once a year and only when I’m actually sick. I get a lot of time off anyway. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/54 "2010-01-20T01:15:55Z")
Since I work at home, I’ve never called in sick. And no matter how sick I am I can still work. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/55 "2010-01-20T01:37:04Z")
When I was working as an instructor, I never called in sick unless I was REALLY sick, because there were no paid sick days and missing a day meant some other instructor had to sub for you, which is always a pain in the ass. I hate inconveniencing people. Actually the only sick days I took as an instructor were when I lost my voice and literally could not say anything anyone could understand. Now that I work most days at HQ I feel less guilty about sick days, but still I’ve only taken three so far, when I had the stomach flu. Stomach flu sucks. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/56 "2010-01-20T02:07:54Z")
I picked Other because my boss is a germ freak, and will send people home if they appear to be sick. Some days I know he will be bothered if I am in the office, so I call in sick, and then put in a full day of work from home. Fortunately for me, I don’t have to consider this day a Sick Day in the HR sense of the word. If I actually use a Sick Day, it is either because I am really sick, or because I have a scheduled medical or dental appointment. That’s permitted where I work. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/57 "2010-01-20T02:39:43Z")
I currently have 105 sick days available if I needed them, so I could get pretty sick. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/58 "2010-01-20T04:45:16Z")
If I call in sick, I’m sick. I don’t abuse it. I’ll be one of those people that cashes in 240 hours of sick time when I retire. ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Pedant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/59 "2010-01-20T04:58:24Z")
In 40 years I have never, not once ever, missed even an hour of work for illness or injury. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545/60 "2010-01-20T05:02:55Z")
> [@Rysdad](#): > > If I call in sick, I’m sick. I don’t abuse it. > > I’ll be one of those people that cashes in 240 hours of sick time when I retire. We can’t cash it in, but it does accrue for as long as we’re in the company. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-call-in-sick-to-work-and-how-many-of-those-days-are-you-actually-sick/525545.md?page=4)