I had to call in sick. Is that normal?
I had to call in sick. Is that normal?
"In this virus-prone winter, my two children fell ill and I couldn't take them to school because they were so feverish and contagious. So as not to upset my employer, who is rather touchy, I had to call in sick myself, as my company doesn't give time off in this kind of situation. Do you think this is normal?
C. Meyrin
Of course not! The basic principle in terms of inability to work is laid down in Article 324a of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO), which basically states that the employer must pay wages to an employee who is prevented from working through no fault of his own for reasons inherent in his person, such as illness, accident or fulfilment of a legal obligation. However, this right is only guaranteed for a relatively short period, which increases with the employee's length of service with the company. For this reason, many contracts and collective bargaining agreements offer improved protection, and many employers take out insurance to cover the 80% of salary in the event of an employee's legitimate absence.
Looking after a young child who is ill is obviously one of your parental duties; by looking after your two children when they could not have been accepted at school because of their condition, you found yourself prevented from going to work through no fault of your own, so that you can legitimately claim payment of your salary (provided that you have been with the company for more than 3 months and have not exhausted your rights in this respect) without having to lie about the reasons for your absence, especially as your employer may require you to produce a medical certificate.
However, the period of leave guaranteed in such circumstances by Article 36 of the Labour Act is only a maximum of 3 days per parent, which is very short compared to other European countries. In fact, Swiss law grants only minimal protection, leaving it up to employers and employees to negotiate more comfortable conditions by agreement if they so wish. Parents must therefore do their utmost to find childcare solutions quickly that are compatible with their professional obligations, using the services of the Red Cross as a last resort, for example...
