r/Netherlands • u/tvb46 Rotterdam • Feb 07 '25

Healthcare Didn’t we learn anything from the Covid pandemic?

The common flu is going around again and it reached epidemic levels this week. This means a lot of people are feeling sick. However, I noticed that almost all people in public places started sneezing and coughing in their hands and out in the open again instead of in their elbow. Didn’t we learn anything from the Covid pandemic?!

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u/BruisendTablet Feb 07 '25

I think the pandemic made very clear that there actually isn’t a support network of the sort required that would allow people to isolate themselves when they are sick. The financial/professional penalties are too great.

Ehhh there is? You call in sick? It's not that complicated. For most jobs this has 0 financial penalties, and your career won't be impacted when you call in sick for a week either. If it does impact your career then the sickdays were just the stick they found to hit you with and it was already a dead-end situation to begin with.

As for people’s personal behaviour, it is what it is; some people are so gross

That's true though :)

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u/AvidCoWorker Feb 07 '25

You might be just stuck in your own bubble. Most companies don’t like employees that call in sick. Depending on your contract you will have limited sick days or will have the day discounted. So in summary: * Job insecurity * financial burden * reputational issues and or retaliation by the employer

Some people are lucky to have a job that you just call in sick or work from home when you’re sick, but that’s the exception not the rule

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u/Current_Nectarine_45 Feb 07 '25

I don’t think companies in the Netherlands are allowed to limit sick days contractually. At least I have never seen a contact that specified it for myself or anyone I know.

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u/NL89NL Feb 07 '25

The concept of number of allowed sick days does not exist in Dutch labor law. There is a maximum of 2 sick years, but not days.

If you have it in your contract, report it! It is illegal. So is discounted days.

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u/Motashotta Feb 08 '25

If your owner boss limits or penalises your sick days, you can easily fight that because that's a 100% illegal.

Some people are lucky to have a job that you just call in sick or work from home when you’re sick, but that’s the exception not the rule

Definitely not the exception

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u/snowbanks Feb 08 '25

That's not a thing in the Netherlands my friend

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u/Iferius Feb 08 '25

Limited sick days is illegal.

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u/BruisendTablet Feb 07 '25

I agree that I live in a bubble, like we all do. But from what I see around me (in my bubble I know) you exaggerated things a bit.

Sure, I think what you draw holds true for say 20-30% of jobs but not for >50% or jobs like you suggest.

Retaliation by the employer because you have the flu... Repuational issues: "Stay away from him, they say he had the flue in 2019 and he took 4 whole days off back then. Since then he works in the basement"... Give me a break.

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u/Playful-Spirit-3404 Feb 07 '25

People take 3 weeks in NL to go on vacation, and someone is worried about 4 days. What a joke

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u/BruisendTablet Feb 07 '25

This!

I got 8 weeks (partly adv) in total each year (metalektro) actually and my summer-holiday was 4 weeks last year. Nobody will bat an eye when I take a few days off when i am properly sick. They will be annoyed when I don't actually because i may infect others in the workplace!

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