Employers’ proposals to curtail sick leave for self-inflicted ailments is difficult to implement and unlikely to benefit either the employers or their workers, a Centre for Labour Studies lecturer warns.

Acknowledging that absenteeism was a costly affair for employers, Luke Fiorini felt the Malta Employers Association’s proposal was problematic for a number of reasons.

“Where would you draw the line when it comes to debating which illnesses are self-inflicted and which are not?

“Should an individual who suffers from an upset stomach be eligible for sick leave if it was the result of a poorly prepared meal at home?” Mr Fiorini said.

“What about the back pain sufferer who is carrying out manual work at home? Or a person experiencing neck pain after spending hours hunched over her tablet at home?

“How would you categorise the obese worker who is suffering from high blood pressure, lower limb pain and heart disease?” he said, adding that lifestyle habits often played a role in instigating many medical conditions.

Mr Fiorini was reacting to one of the MEA’s proposed amendments to the Employment and Industrial Relations Act presented this week, which sparked a controversy.

It was a single paragraph in a 36-page document that read: “The MEA is of the opinion that absenteeism from work due to self-inflicted unfitness for work including, but not limited to, drunkenness, hangover, sunburn, sunstrokes, sports injuries will not render the employee entitled to sick leave, even if the employee is certified by his own doctor as unfit for work.” Mr Fiorini said the examples provided in the MEA’s document were meant to represent situations where the ailment was clearly self-inflicted.

However, the multi-factorial nature of many conditions presented a second issue: could sports injuries, such as tennis elbow, be a consequence of poor workplace design or a weekly tennis game.

“And, while sport does result in the odd injury it also gives rise to physical fitness, which in turn often leads to better work performance, less sickness and healthy ageing,” Mr Fiorini pointed out.

The main unions have already come forward lambasting this “regressive” proposal, and while the Prime Minister felt sick leave abuse had to be addressed he believed the proposal was “draconian”.

The Medical Association of Malta agreed sick leave should not be abused. However, association president Gordon Caruana Dingli said the doctor’s role was to verify that a patient was unfit to work.

“This is not only to allow the patient to benefit from paid sick leave, but to protect the individual from injury at work and to protect other workers from contagious diseases,” Dr Caruana Dingli said.

A company doctor who has been practising in the field for almost 20 years too insisted that company doctors were not policemen.

“Companies send me to examine employees who would have reported sick that day. I check them and certify them as being fit or unfit to work,” the doctor, who preferred to remain anonymous, said.

“That’s what we are there for. I cannot believe how employers are now expecting us to interrogate the patient to investigate why he has an upset stomach,” he said.

The doctor added that due to data protection laws and patient confidentiality, doctors were not even allowed to inform the employer of an employee’s ailment.

“What the employers are expecting of us, apart from stretching it, is also illegal in my view.”

Mr Fiorini also felt the MEA’s proposal could present another problem of presenteeism – going to work when ill – that could lead to negative consequences for both the employee and the organisation.

“Rather than recuperating, an ill individual’s condition is likely to get worse, leading to poorer future health and a greater need for future sickness absence,” he said.

Mr Fiorini also pointed out that consequences to the organisation were likely to be great and include: lower employee morale and motivation; lower quality products and services; damaged company reputation; and in some cases the injury or contagion of other employees.

Numerous scientific studies, he said, had demonstrated that presenteeism was more costly to an organisation than absenteeism.

“A better strategy might be to invest in workplace health promotion initiatives that would result in reduced sick leave and improved worker health, motivation and performance,” Mr Fiorini proposed.

Additional reporting Matthew Xuereb.