Child care leave – a privilege or an entitlement??

In this last week of school, I faced an interesting situation. My immediate reporting officer (RO) informed me that I had taken a high number of medical leave (MC) and child sick leave in the last one term, asking me to work on my health and keeping the numbers low.

Due to my bad experience last year, I felt slightly more sensitive about it. Why? Towards the end of the school term last year, the same RO informed me that I have not been given a good appraisal because of the high number of MCs in the year. It is going to affect the promotion timeframe, performance bonus and my annual increment because they are all tied to performance.

Honestly, now I am still quite calm after hearing about it and allowed me to reflect about. I have no queries about medical leave being an entitlement as written in the ministry of manpower website. But what I dislike is do not write in under the umbrella of benefit when it is not a benefit. What do I mean? We are entitled to 30 days of medical leave under the old scheme (the present is 14 days) but we are not expected to take any because it will affect the performance ranking. Obviously, these people do not understand the definition of benefits so let me help them by doing the research.

–noun
1.
something that is advantageous or good; an advantage: He explained the benefits of public ownership of the postal system.
2.
a payment or gift, as one made to help someone or given by a benefit society, insurance company, or public agency: The company offers its employees a pension plan, free health insurance, and other benefits.
3.
a theatrical performance or other public entertainment to raise money for a charitable organization or cause.
4.
Archaic. an act of kindness; good deed; benefaction.

From dicitionary.com

Similar definition in http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/benefit

1.
a. Something that promotes or enhances well-being; an advantage: The field trip was of great benefit to the students.
b. Help; aid.
2. A payment made or an entitlement available in accordance with a wage agreement, an insurance policy, or a public assistance program.
3. A public entertainment, performance, or social event held to raise funds for a person or cause.
4. Archaic A kindly deed.

From http://www.thefreedictionary.com/benefit

Interestingly, thefreedictionary.com included the word entitlement in the definition of benefit. Further search on entitlement bring up the word of a right granted by law or contract ( a right to benefits)

Apparently, it seems that it is preferred that teachers go to school sickly to clock attendance and teach at lower performance rate. I believe that I own it to my pupils that I give my 101% to my pupils during lesson time, doing it when I am not sufficiently fit is not being fair.

Besides, have we forgotten about the lessons we learned during the SARS period? If we are sick and not well, we should stay at home to rest and go to places that are crowded. (like schools, there are hundreds of pupils) I have seen pupils go to school when they are sick because the parents are not at home to take care of them. These pupils go to school tired and sickly and are not able to concentrate, what is the point of going to school then?

That brings me to the point that I need to take child sick leave because
1) My child needs to rest at home
2) My child may spread the illness to other children in the kindergarten and that is not being gracious (remember SARS)
3) My child needs to be separate from his sibling at least during the day to avoid the illness from spreading within the family.
4) I need to rest from caring for my child at night due to the illness.

Thus, however, child sick leave is also entitlement, as all forms of leaves are entitlement from the ministry of manpower website. And I believed that it is only my right to use my child sick leave if my child is sick and not be penalized as a result of it and having my performance ranking affected as a result of it. So much about the work-life balance – why preach about it when they do not practice it?

I finally awake and understand that working is a necessary evil to take care of my family. I work (I considered it as selling my time for money – “prostituting” myself for money) for the benefit of my family. If I am single, I may not even need to work (oops, that sounds spoilt) but this is one of the ways that the gahmen enslaved and trapped people in this country as I overhear some coffeeshop talk. Hahaha! The gahmen encouraged youths to get married, buy a nice and expensive flat, take as many loans as you like (housing, renovation, car and study loans) and have lots of children and work for the rest of your life, pay lots of tax and retire poor. As a result, we will not be able to migrate overseas.


I resolve today to work towards being rich and being financially free. Amen