Parent phones in sick for their DD at work. AIBU to think this is silly?

[AppleBananaCarrot]

I don't understand why my manager allows it. I'm a supervisor btw. I have name changed for very obvious reasons.

The woman is almost 19! I could slightly understand if she was 16 (although I'd still expect her to do it) it's in our policy that you can't get someone else to phone up and on the 3 occasions she has been sick (over last couple of years) it's always her mother that has phoned in, I asked my manager and he said that the DD was on a drug that makes her tired, so she couldn't get to the phone, but really? If my husband phoned in and said that, I think they'd life and tell him to put me on the phone.

@BakedBeans47 because when paperwork is looked over, it will have how she phoned in what was said etc. if something doesn't seem right (like the policy not being followed or someone saying they were not coming in because they were drunk, etc.) then my paperwork is looked at to see what action I have taken. We would both be disciplined.

Maybe I am getting old...but 19 still seems young to me! Does it really matter if someone rings in to say she is sick? People no longer leave school at 15 / 16 and seem very immature in comparison to my generation. By the time I was 19 some of my contemporaries had been in work for 3 years!

Honestly OP I get you are worried about this but you really are making a mountain out of a molehill.

As long as you note that the employee knows the policy, ask her why she didn’t follow it, confirm the situation re the medication, but reiterate to her what the policy is and (issues with the medication aside) that where possible she should be phoning in herself, and that’s all written on the return to Work form, what would you be disciplined for?

It sounds like you’ve made the assumption she’s only getting her Mum to phone in because she’s young.

Why are you not talking to this young lady and finding out what is wrong?

Ask her to get a doctors note to prove she is unable to talk on the phone. You have to get your facts in order first before throwing the book at her. You don't want a complaint being made against you for discrimination.

“All these peopke who 'just couldn't" and had to have their partners do their big girl work for them - how do you reckon single people handle this“.

^I completely agree with the above

My partner would text, email or phone in sick.

Well policies exist for a reason.

But life doesn't follow a written set of guidelines. Sometimes it's better for the policy to be followed as closely as possible - e.g. Ring in sick but someone else make the call rather than no phonecall as the sock person couldn't manage it themselves.

I always think my work policy is daft re d and v. It's a school. Very strict on 48 hour rule. Ring in with d and v and say off until X day at earliest and will ring to confirm after 48 hours.
They insist despite you being ill and needing sleep you get up and personally ring in next morning - even though county policy states you can't return to work

"As long as you note that the employee knows the policy, ask her why she didn’t follow it, confirm the situation re the medication, but reiterate to her what the policy is and (issues with the medication aside) that where possible she should be phoning in herself, and that’s all written on the return to Work form, what would you be disciplined for?"

^ this

Shouldn't you be annoyed with the unrealistic expectations of your company rather than your poor colleague? Why not raise it with HR and ask for guidance? Isn't it likely it'll give someone a case for a claim for bullying or constructive dismissal if they've been penalised for not ringing in sick if they're physically unable to?

Flavia that's what I was thinking!

Rein hope your DH is recovered now and his company have been called to task over their actions?

Yes, exactly, even if phoning in is shown to decrease sick leave (although I can't find any studies proving this, can anybody share any good ones?) I think creating a good environment at work is much more important, after all there IS a lot of research that shows that poor morale is very bad for productivity and for reducing absenteeism

creating a climate of suspicion is not going to help morale!

that example above of a woman hospitalised with cancer being asked to phone in is horrifying, no wonder the husband told them to fuck off (unfortunately not the fault of the person asking, it is the policy that's wrong, but I can understand his reaction!)

Companies should really rethink their policies, and remember it is human beings they are dealing with, managerialism is a curse of modern work places!

Maybe if the wrist slap you receive about such a small issue is this stressful to you, then maybe being a supervisor is too much for you. I know I could happily take the flack for a colleague who I knew was genuinely unwell.

I have phoned in for my daughter a few times. She gets migraine that makes her sick even moving to be sick she also has to get up and call in before 7.co if she's had a bad night and just gone off to sleep I don't see why I should wake her up to say "I'm ill". Speaking to the employee means nothing, you could put on an ill voice so what's the point.

@Steeley113 you'd happily lose your job? Being a supervisor definitely isn't for you.

Being a supervisor definitely isn't for you.

Or for you by the looks of things.

You're not going to lose your job over it. How dramatic. You sound an absolute delight. Probably working in retail 🙄

Not going to lose my job? You don't know my company no, not retail either

he said that the DD was on a drug that makes her tired, so she couldn't get to the phone

He shouldn't be sharing that info with you unless you are also her supervisor and likely to take the calls. Otherwise its none of your business.

If as a supervisor you take sick calls and it has left you unclear on when to accept a third party call if the employee isn't in hospital then within a larger org it would be HR's place to advise. There are plenty of conditions between at home and in hospital which may merit a third party call as PPs have mentioned.

Its not unreasonable to be confused in this situation but you are not entitled to personal information about any colleague beyond what is essential to do your own job.

I don’t actually see why it matters if you text / call / email or you do or your mum or DP does.

Surely work just need to know that you’re not coming in as soon as possible with an estimate of when you’ll be back in so they can arrange cover.

In my experience it only matters when it's every Saturday or Sunday morning after a heavy night out and it's an 18 year old getting their mum to call in because they haven't made it home in time for work. Quite common in hospitality.

Maybe if the wrist slap you receive about such a small issue is this stressful to you, then maybe being a supervisor is too much for you.

That is a bit harsh - I'd say a policy which is entirely black and white and doesn't give any guidance or training on 'in betweens' is more at fault.

It's not a very sensible policy then, is it.
I can see why it should be the case for most people, most of the time, but plenty of examples on this thread show why it's a pointlessly stupid thing to even try to enforce.
Your HR, or directors, or whoever decided that this policy was a good idea should have a re-think.
Clearly that's not going to happen though.

But no, while it's your job to push the policy and make sure it's adhered to wherever possible, it's not "silly" if the girl can't get to the phone or is too weak to speak. The policy is the silly thing here.

You clearly think you’re right and everyone who is disagreeing is wrong. You’ve had 4 pages of people telling you YABU yet you’re still arguing that you’re not. You know what you want to do and aren’t going to accept people telling you you were wrong so discipline her and move on.

you'd happily lose your job? Being a supervisor definitely isn't for you.

Maybe the job is not for you either.

That is a bit harsh - I'd say a policy which is entirely black and white and doesn't give any guidance or training on 'in betweens' is more at fault.

If you care about your job you would get more training yourself and not rely on the company to do it for you. It sounds like she is ticking boxes and not investigating why she cant phone up sick. You take yourself and your job to seriously and yet on the other hand you only want to do the bare minimum.