The New York Times’ Steven Greenhouse writes that the swine flue scare has triggered a re-evaluation of workplace sick day policies:

Well before President Obama declared H1N1 a national emergency, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was emphasizing that businesses should adopt “flexible leave policies” to allow workers with the flu to stay home. In one advisory, the C.D.C. encouraged employers “to develop nonpunitive leave policies.”

Despite such recommendations, some employees say they have no choice but to go to work sick.

When Latisha Carter caught H1N1 from her 6-year-old daughter in June, she suffered headaches, chills and diarrhea, but she reported to her $13-an-hour help desk job at a Milwaukee insurer nonetheless. The temp agency that placed her does not offer her paid sick days.

Greenhouse reports that 39 percent of workers don’t get paid sick leave and that Congress is thinking about legislation that mandates employers give employees seven paid sick days a year. Sounds like a good idea. However, as this blog is faithfully dedicated to analyzing the executive side of government, I have to wonder how the Labor Dept. would enforce such a rule. The Dept. already struggles to make sure that workers get the minimum wage and get overtime pay after 40 hours of work a week. Labor would have to hire competent civil servants that could handle the complaints of sick employees. Yet Labor Sec. Hilda Solis has yet to fulfill a pledge to hire 200 more workplace inspectors.

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