Everyone is entitled to sick days
Taking a sick day is something that we're enititled too, sometimes you just can't work.
Yet workers in the National Health Service are feeling threatened and intimidated because of the pressure they're feeling that they can't take time off when they are ill.
This issue and the actions of employers in the NHS will be debated next week at the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
A motion from the Society of Radiographers (SoR) says that savings being made by the public sector employers to ensure that there is sufficient capacity to provide a service to patients is at the expense off staff terms and conditions of employment.
Employers are using efficiency savings to introduce amendments to sickness and absence policies that seek to punish staff who are judged taking too much time off.
"Many of the new procedures that have been introduced pay lip service to an employee's well-being, are time-consuming to manage with no discernable financial or service benefit, and threaten the most vulnerable in the workforce," says Pam Black, a member of the SoR's Council.
"As a result of changes to the negotiated policy, members feel threatened and intimidated and attend work when they may not be able to work effectively, or are a danger to themselves and patients."
The motion that will be put to the Congress calls on the TUC to work with employers to ensure they there is a more responsible attitude to any changes to agreed and negotiated policies, and not see sickness and absenteeism as 'soft targets' to save money.