I am in Australia. I called in sick to work today as I've had a sore throat, cough, runny nose and a pounding headache all weekend.
I've been to the doctor who has given me a medical certificate for the rest of the week off as well as antibiotics as they suspect it's bronchitis (I have been testing negative for COVID.)
I let my employer know, and they asked if they wanted someone to drop my computer off at my house so I could work from home this week if I felt up to it.
I work in a department with currently only myself and one other employee, as well as another employee who works half her days in our department and the other half in another department.
I know we're short staffed, I feel incredibly guilty but I really don't want to be pressured into working from home even when I have a medical certificate for the entire week.
Can my employer actually ask me to work if my doctor has given me the week off? I worked in retail management for a few years and was always told it wasn't legal to have someone return to work when their certificate precluded them from doing so but I'm not sure if it is actually illegal.
I don't want to let the team down, but I honestly feel like shit. We don't have anyone else cross trained that can fill mqy position for the week. It doesn't feel like it's my responsibility at all, but I still feel incredibly guilty.