A sick message we must reject

It was a message even more dangerous than it was distasteful, which is saying a lot. Don’t call in sick, a franchise boss for jewellery retailer Pandora instructed staff, ‘‘unless you have something serious’’.

It was a reprehensible message during this time of coronavirus where the worldwide call from epidemiologists, and sane governments, is that we all need to have a cautious, preventive approach. That we are not to wait until we are already feeling wretchedly ill, but make the call in time for it to do the most good, for all our sakes.

The pre-Christmas video message from Joseph Howley, of The Howley Group, stonily instructed staff to contact him directly if they planned not to show up at work. ‘‘Is that clear?’’ he said, as he stared down the camera.

For the staff in Australia and New Zealand, the meaning was surely clear. Perhaps vague about what might or might not constitute something serious, it was limpid in its clarity that calling in sick was itself a serious matter indeed, during a pressured three weeks when it was all hands to the pump.

And how intimidating a prospect had Howley just made it for anyone who felt they might be coming down with something? This would be such unwelcome news that it could not merely be passed on to a store supervisor, but needed to go directly to the big boss. Mr Is-That-Clear.

This video was reportedly intended for an Australian component of Howley’s Pandora workforce, but nevertheless NZ staff say they were instructed to watch it as well. The higher-up hierarchy at Pandora has swiftly repudiated the message, which they insist was simply poorly communicated. And not representative, at all, of their corporate approach – a reassurance that will be all the more needed given that people are inclined to form their own views about which shops it’s wise to step into during a pandemic.

The legality of Howley’s instructions, incidentally, has itself drawn comment from Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Michael Wood, who has described the message as wrong both in terms of legality and in how the Government expects people to behave.

Just a fortnight ago, referring to the doubling of sick days in New Zealand to 10 a year, Wood was making what most would call the crashingly obvious point that businesses benefit when their staff stay home when they’re sick – it means bugs don’t spread, absences are fewer, and productivity isn’t compromised.

There’s an extent to which we need to cut businesses a break where we can. These are tough times for staff, certainly, but also for many employers who may be facing extra costs.

But when it comes to pressure on staffing levels, the solution isn’t simply to be found in terms of tweaking expectations of staff behaviour. Sheer numbers also come into it. Many employers understand this, but too many still don’t have the message that they need to employ enough people to cover for sick employees.

Much as the Christmas-New Year period is an important one for retail, it’s at times like this that health imperatives have to be all the more diligently understood and maintained.

Again, most employers get this. Those who don’t need to get the message. Is that clear?

When it comes to pressure on staffing levels, the solution isn’t simply to be found in terms of tweaking expectations of staff behaviour. [Firms] ... need to employ enough people to cover for sick employees.