Are you wondering how to stay healthy this winter, especially since influenza and norovirus have been at extra-high levels this year? It’s harder than you think.

You probably can recite the most common public health recommendations by heart: get vaccinated, wash your hands, and get enough sleep. There’s also the common-sense warning that could keep you from spreading germs to others: Stay home if you are ill. If only that advice were easier to follow!

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clearer than ever that paid sick leave is only a fantasy for the most essential workers. People who serve you coffee and toast at the diner work by the hour. If they don’t show up, they don’t get paid.

Here is a recent story from a reader about the problem of getting sick at work: “I just got over what I think was norovirus. I came down with it at work; I work in a factory and have up to eight machines to keep running.

“I told my boss I was ill, spending more time in the ladies’ room than on the job. When I asked if she could call people on the next shift to see if anyone could come in early, she refused and wouldn’t let me go home.

“Then I went to medical. Despite running to the restroom to vomit as my blood pressure was being taken, the nurse refused to excuse me from work. I was expected to get through the day on Imodium and Pepto Bismol.

“This was a week ago. I spent that day with my boss yelling that machines weren’t running and wanting to know where I was. So, I told her. ‘Bathroom.’ ‘Vomiting.’ ‘Diarrhea.’ ‘Dry heaves.’

“I don’t know how many people I breathed on. I hope I washed my hands adequately. But last week, four more people called in sick, three of them, like me, were hit with this bug at work and not allowed to go home. I wonder how many I spread this to, courtesy of an ignorant management.

“When she recently got COVID-19, she was ordered by her boss to report to work. She looked awful, was coughing constantly and wore a mask. But three more people in our department came down with COVID-19 over the next 10 days. One of them has chronic asthma and was hospitalized. We all suspect the boss infected him and could’ve killed him.”

We certainly feel bad for workers in a situation like this. Other essential workers also report for duty even when they are ill. Health professionals may not be hourly workers, but their culture discourages calling in sick. Here are some comments we have received on our website.

“I am a nurse and have worked in the hospital setting for 21 years. Hospital managers treat us like we are children, requiring an ‘excuse’ when out sick. I refuse to go to my doctor just to be told I have a cold! These last two years, I have started to stay home when sick. My health is important, and the illness is a lot shorter when I get adequate rest.”

Another person wrote: “Many hospitals tell staff to stay home when ill. However, managers write employees up, penalizing them on their yearly reviews if they miss more than three days of work in a row. Even with a note from your MD stating that you were ill, it is still considered an unexcused absence and requires a write-up.”

Isn’t it time we got smart? Providing paid sick leave is cost-effective in the long run because it keeps more people from becoming ill. It might also help a sick worker recover more quickly.

In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of King Features, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803, or email them via their website: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com.