Jerry Hayes says it’s ‘selfish and dishonest’ to socialise while ill after a judge ruled that going to the pub while off sick from work is not a sackable offence.
Former Tory MP Jerry Hayes appeared on Good Morning Britain today alongside Apprentice star Thomas Skinner to debate whether going out to socialise after calling in sick to work should be a stackable offence.
Barrister Jerry, 68, from Uttlesford, said that employees will be letting companies down at a time businesses are struggling after the pandemic, while Essex-based business owner Thomas, 30, argues that bosses need to trust their staff, and that not every illness is the same.
It comes after the case of a 66-year-old driver who was fired after being caught at the social club while off sick from work. A judge rules that unless he had been specifically forbidden from socialising while ill by his employer, he was free to do what he liked.
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Jerry Hayes says it’s ‘selfish and dishonest’ to socialise while ill after a judge ruled that going to the pub while off sick from work is not a sackable offence on Good Morning Britain today
Essex-based business owner and Apprentice star Thomas Skinner, 30, says bosses need to trust their staff, and that not every illness is the same
Speaking of a potential influx in workers calling in sick because of the start of the Euros tomorrow, he said: ‘I think this is going to happen and there will be a lot of leeway and sympathy from employers, but you book the time off.
‘That’s what you do, you book the time off and if the employer says yes there’s no problem at all.
‘If you’re a primary school teacher the class will have to be sent home. If you’re a small business owner and you’ve been done over by the pandemic, it’s just selfish and it’s dishonest and it’s the dishonesty that is really, really so [unacceptable].’
Several viewers agreed with Jerry, arguing it’s ‘disloyal’ to your employers and colleagues to have a ‘jolly’ at the pub if you’re supposedly not well enough to go into work.
Several viewers agreed with Jerry, arguing it’s ‘disloyal’ to your employers and colleagues to have a ‘jolly’ at the pub if you’re not well enough to go into work
One wrote: ‘If you are well enough to go to a pub then you are well enough to go to work. Selfish people not thinking about their colleagues having to pick up their work.’
Another said: ‘It’s disloyal to the people who pay your wages and disrespectful to the colleagues covering your job whilst you have a jolly day in the pub.’
‘The rule for my children was always not well enough for school not well enough to play out. I feel the same about work,’ penned another viewer.
A fourth agreed: ‘If I’m sick and off work that means I stay home BECAUSE IM SICK, otherwise if I’m well enough to go out then I’m well enough to go to work.’
Barrister Jerry, 68, Uttlesford, said that employees will be letting companies down at a time businesses are struggling after the pandemic
Thomas believes that employers should trust and value their workers, but insisting that ‘you can be sick for so many different reasons’
Meanwhile, Thomas believes that employers should trust and value their workers, and said that ‘you can be sick for so many different reasons’.
‘It depends what you’re sick for,’ he said. ‘You can wake up in the morning and feel terrible and then in the evening you feel fine.’
‘It is so important, my staff are like superheroes,’ he said. ‘I value them so much and without my staff I haven’t got a business and it’s so hard to get good staff, so you have to look after them.’
He added that he knows where to draw the line, saying: ‘If someone lied to me, if someone stole from me they would be sacked straight away.’
Several viewers agreed with Tom, saying it depends why the individual employee has called in sick to work – with many praising him as a boss and insisting workers are more likely to be loyal to their employers when treated ‘fairly’ in the workplace
Several viewers agreed with Tom, saying it depends why the individual employee has called in sick to work – with many praising him as a boss and insisting workers are more likely to be loyal to their employers when treated ‘fairly’ in the workplace.
One said: ‘Good old fashioned common sense as always from Thomas Skinner who sees the value of a good work force and even joins his staff member in the pub for a drink! What a totally refreshing attitude and respect for those helping to build his business.’
‘I wish Tom he was my boss when I worked very fair and believe in looking after his staff,’ wrote another viewer.
A third said: ‘Thomas sounds like the perfect boss ! He sounds like he has a heart & understands people. But yeah take the micky and your out! Love this man!’.