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Summer 2005

Screws on Sick Leave Sickens Workers

HACSU has become increasingly concerned with the trend towards onerous documentation provisions on workers when they are sick.

This matter was left unresolved in the last Public Sector Agreement, with management wanting to implement a crack-down, forcing all workers to produce doctors certificate's whenever they have a sick day.

HACSU State Secretary, Chris Brown, said this proposal was unworkable, and would force many workers to turn up to work sick, leading to a less healthy workplace by passing on flu's and colds.

"If you force people with colds or the flu to get a doctor's certificate for a one-day absence, many people will be forced to travel when they are sick, because you can't get a doctor's certificate retrospectively."

"Many people will just think if I have to go out I might as well go to work and will turn up sick and infect the rest of the workforce."

"As well, there are many people who live 50 or 60 k's away from a doctor, so they would have to travel that distance when they are sick."

"This arrangement makes no sense and is unfair on workers."

"One of the options we looked at during the wage agreement negotiations was a sick leave cap with some other arrangements, and that there would be a trial of this."

"The trial has never happened, and now they are looking at pushing something through that punishes people when they are ill."

"We will never accept this."

Chris Brown said Tasmanian public sector unions were now looking at running a State-wide campaign around the issue of sick leave.