Every
so often, we all have to deal with situations when our colleagues at work fall
ill. In some of these situations, we have to live with the effects of the ill
health as some are long term while in other cases, it is a one off condition
that gets treated and has the staff get back to normal work processes. Dealing
with ill health situations at work can be a stressor and if not well managed,
can lead to reduced performance and strained relationships at work.
Consider
the experiences of Monica. When she was diagnosed of cancer late last year, it
appeared to her as a dream. She had always heard of persons being diagnosed
with the illness and had never, just like the majority of us, imagined herself
having to bear the effects of cancer. By the time the diagnosis was arrived at,
she had hopped from one hospital to another in search of the best treatment for
the unending pain around her chest. With the diagnosis confirmed, she informed
her line manager who requested her to also discuss the situation with the HR
department.
The
most important news that Monica got from her employer was that the company insurance
cover would take care of her treatment and therefore needed not to worry about
the financial implications of the condition. This was a real boost to her
commitment to the employer as she felt appreciated and cared for. However as she
started off with her treatment, it was realized that she had to be redeployed
from her current duty station to ease the process of accessing the health
centre. This meant swopping positions with another staff. This was not easy.
Since she was working from a far flung town, none of the staff at the head
office in the capital was willing to swap places with her. The management of
the company had to almost force a certain staff to relocate.
Ill
health among the staff team can be a real source of organizational headache yet
since people will once in a while break down (just like machines also do),
every workplace needs to be ready to deal with this situation when it arises.
It is as sure as the sun rising tomorrow that a staff will at some point fall
ill. In addition to the strains caused by the need to redeploy ill staff, the
workplace also experience a sudden slump in performance. Ill health slows every
one down as the persons take time off to seek medical attention. This affects
team performance since each person has a role within the system.
It is
also clear that in most cases when staff fall ill, their tasks are in the short
term redistributed among the rest of the team and this leads an overload within
the team. If this is not well appreciated, it leads to discontent and could
easily break the team.
Since
staff will at some point in their work-life get sick, it is important for the
organization to develop responsive policies aimed at providing adequate support
to the ill staff. Such policies relate to provision of medical services at the
employers’ expense or through an agreed upon cost sharing mechanism. The
employer must be seen to be concerned about the health of the staff and not
project themselves as only interested in the staff when they are in good health.
Since
ill health has a way of taking strength and time away from the workplace, it is
key for the teams to be prepared on how to best reallocate tasks among them whenever
one of the team mates is taken ill. You don’t want to work in an environment where
your colleagues grumble and murmur whenever you fall ill since they have to
bear the burden of your tasks. Staff should consider being helpers since we all
will go through the cycles of life at our own times.
Finally,
it has been noticed that some staff take advantage of their ill health to
abscond work or operate below average. Taking advantage of ill health is an
immoral practice and since others would easily note when the colleague is
taking them for a ride, it is likely that there would be a revolt to the
detriment of your career growth plan.
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