It might be illegal, but when you gotta pay bills, you can't afford to press charges.

I had a boss make me come in to work while I had a stomach flu, because he couldn't get anyone else to cover. Hell, he asked if I could leave the hospital to come into work one time when I was there because of complications from chronic kidney disease. Some bosses are just insane.

????? okay?

Exactly! No boss should ever call in a sick employee. But the fact that op is a waitress makes this fml so much worse. F all the people that ate at the tables op waited on. Chances are people are going home sick because their food, silverware, cups were contaminated. The boss is a major idiot. It's better to be short staffed than to make everyone sick.

If I was at a restaurant and the waiter was sick, I definitely would not be eating there and would be speaking to the manager about basic hygiene and the many ways he's exposing customers to whatever illness the waiter has by not sending them home. I'd also consider reporting the manager to the health department. It's just so gross and common sense says someone who is sick shouldn't be around food other people are eating or the plates, cups, utensils, etc. they are using

It said she was waiting a table, so there are high chances that her arms were loaded with plates. Plus sneezes can occasionally sneak up on you. And she said "bad cold" not "mild cold." She's in a job where she will constantly be around customers and their food. It seems like a bad idea to me for a waitress to serve customers with a red crusty nose, feverish sweaty sheen on her forehead, blowing their nose and sneezing all the time, and (if their hands are full) then sneezing on the food and having boogers go everywhere...and I doubt customers would be satisfied with her simply turning her head a bit. I know I'd still be paranoid about spray contamination. Anyways in the type of job she has, I think it was rather reasonable of her to ask for a day off if it was truly a bad cold.