Hillary Clinton’s Failure to Stop Working After Contracting Pneumonia Highlights a Costly Misconcept

A couple weeks ago, during the 9/11 memorial, Hilary Clinton had to leave the ceremony early and nearly collapsed getting into her car. While initial reports stated that she had become “overheated,” it was eventually revealed that she had contracted pneumonia. The announcement of her illness set off a firestorm in the press and on the campaign trail. Critics immediately denounced her failure to reveal her condition as evidence that she is not trustworthy, a claim that has been made frequently this election season. While some instances of Secretary Clinton’s behavior may be seen as dishonest or at least misguided, I don’t believe this was one of them. In fact, research shows that Secretary Clinton’s decision to go to work and push past her illness is a clear reflection of America’s working culture.

In America, we are unlikely to let communicable illnesses stop us from going to work. Sometimes the reasons are simple. If you don’t have paid sick leave and need money to make rent or put food on the table, you are more likely than those with paid sick leave to work through an illness (DeRigne et al., 2016). To most of us, that makes sense. We might not want someone hacking and coughing next to us at work, but we can understand our colleagues' need to provide for themselves and their families.

In jobs where paid sick leave is common, however, the rationale for putting ourselves and our coworkers at risk by working while ill may not be as obvious.

A 2015 study of medical professionals by Szymczak, et al. found that over 83% had worked at least one day in the past year while ill. Further, over 50% said they had worked during acute onset of significant respiratory symptoms (i.e. bronchitis or pneumonia). The decision for these doctors and nurses to work is perplexing given that over 95% believed that working while sick put patients at risk! So why do they do it? Why do professionals with sick leave and the expertise to know better, still show up at work when they are sick? Top reasons include: not wanting to let colleagues down (98.7%), not wanting to let patients down (92.7%) and fear of ostracism by colleagues (64%). So these medical professionals, who know they are putting patients at risk feel both an obligation to go to work while sick and a fear of reprisal if they do not.

My experience in the corporate world was very similar. My colleagues feared that taking time off would either cause someone else to have to work harder or would cause work to be late, thus making them look bad. I have seen colleagues walked out of the building by a manager who cared enough about their employee to prioritize their health, or feared getting sick themselves (or both). But more often, I have seen miserable looking people fighting a cold or flu in order to get their daily allotment of work completed.

The irony of America’s work-through-the-sickness mentality is that it actually costs businesses more than if sick employees just stayed home. Scholars have coined the term presenteeism to describe sick people going to work and estimates of the cost of presenteeism to the US economy range from $150b - $250b per year, a figure greater than the productivity losses from absenteeism (Pohling et al., 2016).

So the next time you’re tempted to go to work despite that hacking cough, fever, upset stomach, etc., remember that you’re actually hurting your company more than you’re helping it. Let your manager know that you are taking care of yourself so you can recover as quickly as possible and will return fully productive and without infecting any of your coworkers. Then, see a doctor, rest and reduce any anxiety you feel about missing work by reminding yourself that you’ve done the right thing for yourself, your colleagues and your employer.

References:

DeRigne, LeaAnne; Stoddard Dare, Patricia A.; and Quinn, Linda M., "Workers without paid sick leave less likely to take time off for illness or injury compared to those with paid sick leave" (2016). Social Work Faculty Publications. Paper 31. http://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/clsowo_facpub/31

Pohling, R., Buruck, G., Jungbauer, K.-L., & Leiter, M. P. (in press). Work-related factors of

presenteeism: The mediating role of mental and physical health. Journal of Occupational

Health Psychology. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0039670

Szymczak JE, Smathers S, Hoegg C, Klieger S, Coffin SE, Sammons JS. Reasons Why Physicians and Advanced Practice Clinicians Work While Sick: A Mixed-Methods Analysis.JAMA Pediatr. 2015;169(9):815-821. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.0684.

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Matt Dooley, MS, MBA, LAPC, NCC is an Atlanta-based counselor who helps individuals and couples live happier, more fulfilled lives. Matt works with a wide range of Adult and Teen clients. His specialties include working with individuals struggling with mood disorders, addiction and career concerns. He is currently taking new clients, and can be reached by phone or email .

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