What would happen where you work if you were "stranded" and late back from a holiday?

[LoyaltyBonus]

I probably should say this is a school, so there's no possibility of being asked to take the extra days as holiday.

The staff member's return flight was delayed by 24 hours due to bad weather. The general unrest at this has also lead to people "realising" that he was off sick for the last three days before we broke up.

I'm only involved on periphery, thankfully, I'm not the one who has to deal with it and I'm not affected by the absence, but there is outrage among his immediate colleagues and I'm curious as to how this would be dealt with in other places. Our absence policy just says approval absence due to extreme weather is at the head teacher's discretion.

Would it be reasonable for the employer to ask for proof of the outward and return flight booking, as his colleagues are suggesting?

Also about a week ago I got bumped from a flight and was rebooked the next day. I was able to work remotely and not a single person questioned me

I'm guessing there is a back story behind why people are sceptical.

Genuine issues my school wouldn't mind and our internal cover supervisors would cover the day. We'd probably need to provide evidence though.

I don't know what approach leadership are taking, but yes among his colleagues he is unpopular for being difficult, unco-operative, always knowing his "rights" to the detriment of others. Some would, I'm sure, say he's perfectly entitled to stick up for his rights, but generally, it is a very nice place to work with a lot of give and take on both sides and this man doesn't "fit". It's probably his colleagues who feel that, more than leadership

I'm all for people sticking up for their workplace rights.

I'm less sympathetic to colleagues who find a way to utterly obstructive and uncooperative that they turn even the most simple thing into a so called rights issue, often being downright unpleasant in the process.

We were caught in the Ash Cloud delat a few years ago - dh went to an internet cafe and continued to work - not sure how he worked his leave out though - I don't remember him making an issue of it.

Was stranded for a week due to volcanic ash cloud a few years ago. My boss was horrendous calling me numerous times a day to see if I had worked out another way home causing me so much stress and telling me I wouldn’t be paid.

When I returned found that many other people had been in same position so HR policy was put in place and we were all paid and didn’t have to take it as holiday etc.

Wish I had told her where to stick it! Hindsight is a wonderful thing

Why are all these random people getting involved?
So what if the person got ill a few days before the holiday started. I never realised that I could schedule being ill in this way.

I wouldn't be surprised if the person is signed off sick for longer. Oh, hang on it's a school. I thought for a minute there it was the adults.

And colleagues running off to tell tales with evidence. Wow. Ok it's annoying when you have to cover someone, but what makes it your job to go and seek out proof? I can understand the manager if the person has a form for it.

My head told staff to back off. The PERSONAL life of a colleague has nothing to do with them. If a colleague wants to share this with you, they will do so. And as part of the school policy, I will deal with it.

Head does just that. Based on the details he knows, unlike everyone else, a decision is made. There were lots of things my head new that no-one ever did.

And if needed, the head might possibly keep a bit of an eye on certain staff, or get their heads to do it.

And it's a shame really that managers have to tell people to stop getting so invested in another person's personal life. A hobby would be a better use of your time.

I think the inference is that he wasn't ill but has engineered an extension to his holiday and of course the colleagues are "involved" because they've had to pick up his classes and because he's generally not willing to help anyone. So yes, they're being all bitter (and childish) about it, but they do have some cause.

I'm guessing there is a back story behind why people are sceptical.

I think this is the crux of it. If he was known as a hard worker, non piss taker I bet no one would question it. If he’s a skiver and/or pain in the arse that might explain the cynicism

Ah, I remember being the uncooperative one when I wouldn't play ball and stuck up for my rights.
Some, if not all of those rights are protected.
Rights are there for reasons.

Does he do the job he is paid to do?
When asked to cover a class, if he is able, does he?

Rights are there for reasons.

And they also come with responsibilities, including, in the workplace arena, to vouch for your absence in the event of you not turning up for the job you’re employed to do.

Oops I have assumed he his a teacher.
I never thought he could be a ta. They are sometimes asked to cover ta's in other classes.
But I suppose the questions still apply.

What kind of work related rights is he being asked to give up?

But I agree, random staff shouldn’t be sticking their oar in. It’s for the manager to manage.

Happened to me as a junior doctor. Flights were cancelled, looked into everything I could including driving to other airports and just couldn’t get back. I think in theory they could have/should have put it through as unpaid but they didn’t. Probably a bit much faff for HR/payroll! Again though I was always helpful and reliable covering other people’s unplanned absences.

What does his job matter, @ffswhatnext? If he’s employed to do a job, the expectation is that he turns up to do it, or if he’s unable to, that he evidences why.

If their chair is nice there's a risk that someone might swap it too.

Oh that’s a good point. All is fair when someone is off.
I changed classrooms this year and actually have an adult sized chair for the first time in 10 years.

My work wouldn't care, or rather I'm the only one who suffers because no one does my job but me, the good news is that as long as I have a computer and internet plus my phone I can work. Teaching is different but if it's genuine then nothing should be done. The implication is that they are lying, the booking form would prove it of course

With rights come responsibilities.

If someone is an arse in the workplace, regularly shafting their colleagues, being unpleasant etc then they can't be surprised if their colleagues don't warm to them.

To be suitably vague for obvious reasons, I worked with someone who would conveniently try to argue they don't need X Y Z which were basic and reasonable expectations of a classroom teacher and were quite gifted at trying to turn it into a workplace bullying / workplace stress /my rights issue. Unsurprisingly, people had little time for them.

For me, it would depend on their absence history and communication about sickness and delay. Usually I’d just tell the staff member not to claim time off in lieu for a couple of weeks. It’s maybe one of those things except if they had taken sick leave to travel early.

If I thought they were taking liberties, I would do a little investigation about delays and if not reassured I’d have a formal conversation and ask them to bring proof of flight times out and return and proof of delay.

It would take real concerns for me to do that as it’s questioning their integrity and would lose goodwill and destroy relationships. I’d have to be pretty certain to formalise it but then if they had lied or had outward flights booked during sick leave then it would be either dismissal with immediate effect or a final warning.

But Lola that's an extreme description for what the OP has described - shafting other colleagues?

What we would do for a child who was 'sick' before a holiday period and then 'unexpectedly delayed' on the return is ask for proof of original flight bookings as the first step towards invoking fines etc - or not.

It would therefore seem entirely reasonable to ask for the same proof from a member of staff.

I'm wondering about the job because he is sticking up for his rights and others are seeing him as uncooperative.

I have seen ta's been treated abhorrently by others because they will not work unpaid overtime on a regular basis. I have experienced first-hand management having a go because I would not stay until 6 pm that night, and work until midnight. All because she had forgotten to organise something.
I have seen teachers in tears and at breaking point because when they have asked for help, they have been denied and had to bring their rights in. Yet they were regularly expected to help everyone else. Now that person in a different school, are sticking firming to protecting their rights.
People having genuine health problems that are questioned by colleagues simply because they want to gossip. (happens everywhere). Which can lead to a vicious cycle of person off more because it's their impacting their mental health, and the colleagues carry on gossiping?
One school I couldn't leave quick enough because of the play ball, often with bullying and alienation going on. And the further down the chain you are, the more you seem uncooperative.

@Mistressiggi

@housebuyer101 - but that isn't in anyway the same as a teacher not turning up for his class of teaching. You can't do that remotely

If this was your DCs teacher and it was a deliberate act, would you still carry on with the breezy 'it doesn't matter' comments?

This ^

I totally agree with @LolaSmiles re "rights"

I think this is the crux of it. If he was known as a hard worker, non piss taker I bet no one would question it. If he’s a skiver and/or pain in the arse that might explain the cynicism

this ^. I worked with loads of colleagues over 30 years that would be mortified if this happened to them and no-one would expect anything to 'happen' to them if they were cuaght genuinely in something like this they could do nothing about - they'd get a bit of ribbing for a while when they got back and that would be the end of it. But they are all people you know would never try and take the mick / lie about dates / etc. The vanishingly rare colleague that might have tried to pull the wool over SMTs eyes and 'pretend' this happened in order to bag a cheap holiday would infuriate their colleagues, because it is not what you do when you work in a school, and, unlike many jobs where they would work remotely or catch up work over the next week or just 'not get the work done', schools can't leave a class of 30 children to entertain themselves all day without their teacher in front of them.