> People with the flu tend to self-isolate showing symptoms.

Do you have any other fantasy tales you’d like to tell?

Yea, I recently caught flu from someone else that "could not miss their work". So these things don't really apply well to the US at all.

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roryirvine 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Was it actually flu, or just a bad cold?

I've had flu twice, and both times I simply wouldn't have been able to leave the house no matter how much I wanted to - even just turning over in bed was a major effort!

Would people not have spotted their shivering and sweating and sent them straight home again?

	▲	globular-toast 4 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Influenza symptoms vary widely from person to person and strain to strain. All the way from symptomless to dead.

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mystraline 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Yep. This is called "food service".

Shit pay, no benefits, and managers who threaten to fire you if you dont show up. Sick? Puke in the bathroom.

Whys this the case? Cause we Americans have garbage for labor laws. You can be fired for pretty much any reason. And you are NOT protected if youre sick.

When I had to work food seevice, at starbucks, subway, random pizza chain, etc, I begrudgingly came in sick, infected LOADS of customers. My choice was to work, or get fired (or not fired but 0 hours for next 2 weeks on schedule as punishment).

Who knows how many I got sick and potentially killed due to compromised immune systems. Im sure I did.

This is the real, hidden external cost, of our unmitigated capitalism. People get sick and die for the reason of making the boss more money, and too fucking bad.

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pixl97 3 hours ago | parent [-]

>Cause we Americans have garbage for labor laws

And healthcare being tied to "having a good enough job".

But yea, it's a huge mess.

	▲	amanaplanacanal 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Divorcing health care from employment would be a wonderful change, but I don't see it ever happening. Employers love it because it makes employees fear for their job, and insurers love it because if everybody saw how much they were actually paying every month they would fight to change the system.

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jmyeet 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

The world is bigger than the US. Also, not everybody in the US is an underpaid service worker with no benefits. Also, if you limit yourself to just the US, you're still just wrong [1]:

> Approximately one-quarter (26%, n = 303/1169) of adults (aged 16–64 years) with self-reported ILI took time off work for their illness for a mean of 3.3 days, compared with 31% (n = 31/99) and 20% (n = 3/15) of those with confirmed influenza A or B, respectively, who reported missing a mean of 3.8 and 3.0 days.

[1]: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9748403/

	▲	trvz 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		You've replied to the wrong comment. Anyway: taking time off work when too sick to work != isolating when the symptoms first appear.

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gib444 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

I swear there is an element of the virus that drives you out of isolation, to spread it?.

It always goes like this with me, the first few days:

- Hm, am I coming down with something? Not too sure. Feel a bit under the weather

- I'm feeling great! Let's go shopping/for coffee/to the supermarket/see friends

- OHH I definitely have flu