President Donald Trump’s recent comments about his colleagues have raised red flags concerning the workplace environment he has established.

On Monday, Trump revealed that Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.) “would be dead by June” without his help after receiving a terminal diagnosis. Trump encouraged House Speaker Mike Johnson to tell the story of Dunn’s efforts to keep working despite his illness, saying that “(Dunn) would be proud.”

“I mentioned it to the president. I said that Congressman Dunn is a real champion and a patriot because he’s still coming to work,” Johnson said. “If others got this diagnosis, they’d be apt to retire…”

Trump interrupted Johnson to share the details about the diagnosis that had not yet been publicly revealed.

That same day, Trump announced on Truth Social that his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, had been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer but had decided to keep working.

“During the treatment period, she will be spending virtually full time at the White House, which makes me, as President, very happy!” he wrote.

ANNABELLE GORDON via Getty Images

House Speaker Mike Johnson and President Donald Trump had a laugh while discussing a terminally ill colleague on Monday.

Trump’s comments about his colleagues indicate a workplace culture that promotes presenteeism, which is when a person continues to work despite being sick.

Although he praised such behavior, presenteeism can cost U.S. businesses over $150 billion annually, nearly 10 times more than absenteeism, according to a Harvard Business Review study done in 2004. A 2023 survey by BambooHR found that 89% of respondents worked while sick in the previous year, and 40% hesitated to use sick leave.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 80% of private-industry workers in 2025 had access to paid sick leave, leaving 20% to bear the financial costs themselves if they took time off work.

Chris Eldridge, the U.K., Ireland and North American CEO of the recruitment agency Robert Walters, told HuffPost that not having access to paid sick leave could be a major reason why some employees choose to work while ill. He also noted that presenteeism can lead to a longer recovery and decreased productivity.

“There’s plenty of evidence to say there’s no really good outcome of presenteeism,” he said.

Presenteeism has likely gotten worse in recent times due to the increase in remote work, which has drastically reduced the barrier of commuting into the office to simply opening a laptop, per Eldridge. One can join a virtual meeting with the camera off, even while sick. But doing so doesn’t serve the individual and can elongate recovery. It’s up to the company to clearly state its expectations of workers when they are sick.

“I do think it is down to the leadership behavior,” Eldridge said. “Unless it is clearly made out, there could well be downstream negative consequences.”

Eldridge said that often an employee will have good intentions in continuing to work while sick, such as not wanting to fall behind or place more of a burden on colleagues. But they need to be in a position where they feel comfortable leaning on their team for support when needed.

Nevertheless, he does hear of instances in which company leaders commend employees who “go the extra mile” despite illness, similar to Trump’s praise.

“Most sensible employers will turn and go, ‘Well, don’t do that. We don’t ask it of you,’” he said.