To think DH might get fired?!

[ohgodwhatcanido]

NC for this.

Essentially DH fell asleep ah hour ago after being violently ill all night and morning; I've been sick as well so I think it's a bug. He was off one day last month but hasn't had time off before that for about three months. He asked if I'd call in for him so I did and the conversation went like this:

Him: 'Good morning X speaking how can I help?'
Me: 'Hi there, I'm calling to let you know that X'
Him: 'Sorry, who?'
Me:' Sorry, my line isn't too clear, I was calling to let you know X won't be able to come in this morning. He's been up all night being-'
Him: 'I don't want to hear it thanks, bye'

And then hung up. He didn't even let me explain why and sounded really mad. DH just had his days off for the week so I'm worried they'll think he's playing at it. Am I over thinking it or does this not look good?

Yep, user. Thats exactly what I'm saying

@runmummyrun68

No because those longer periods will have doctors notes to cover them giving room for discretion etc

Anyone can get a doctor to write them off sick for 2 weeks - for very little, by feigning an illness or making something out to be worse than it is. (And you can self certificate for the first week.)

Laughable as fuck that people can get multiple weeks off, and get away with it - but will be threatened with the sack for having 3 individual days off.

And you are deluded if you think the company will be OK with three separate fortnights off, even if you do have a 'doctor's note...' They will hold it against you for sure, if they are thinking of cutting staff later on. All I am saying is it is STUPID how they hold 3 individual days off against you, but you can get 3 fortnights off, (for example.)

Some companies and managers are utter twats. No wonder people have a lot of time off. Probably the stress of having a shit boss, and working for a cunty company.

@waxonfeckoff

I believe that some companies have lie detection software (of sorts) on their absence telephone lines

I rest my case.

He should have phoned himself but the manager was very rude. Its not really acceptable to speak to someone on the phone like that, he didn't even for you time to say why, so he could have been in hospital!

I think it's all very well to say he's had a lot of absenses but if he's ill he's ill, he can't exactly go in with a stomach bug can he? I don't know what PPs expect him to do with that statement. 3 periods of illness over winter isn't that many, what about people with chronic conditions, young children, immunosuppressed etc.? At the end of the day if someone's been sick they can't go in to work.

Unless the man is in hospital unable to physically make the phone call himself or he literally cannot speak for any reason in which case the first thing you should have done is just that then there is absolute no reason you should have phoned in for him he is a grown up!!!
I was in my job 7 years had 3 bouts of sickness (loosing my voice in a phone job!!) And i got disaplinary and a threat of loosing my job!

My employer requests that we phone before the time that we are due to be at work. He is essentially going AWOL and his employer will not be happy. Other people phoning in is not allowed unless it is an emergency

I see the 'no sickness' brigade is out in force. The same people who go to work with a cold, and love to infect the whole office.

Come now seriously.

Can you imagine the state of the country if everyone took time off for a cold?

The police, fire brigade, NHS etc are already massively understaffed and over-stretched without people ringing in sick when they could easily work.

It doesn't mean they 'love to infect' others. We're all responsible for our own hygiene and there are ways to limit our chances of spreading/catching colds, without bringing the country to a standstill.

I’m with @UserV on this one.

I’ve known my husband for 20 years and he is never off sick, let alone been so unwell that he wasn’t able to make the phone call himself.

If he was up all night vomiting and the rest, but had finally fallen asleep I would take it upon myself to help him if he had asked.
Had I got the above response I would have woken DH and told him he better call himself but at least I tried.

I had flu once and I thought I was going to die. I couldn’t even get out of bed to piss without someone helping me. It was the worst illness I’ve ever had in my life. I couldn’t have cared less if a leprechaun called I sick for me (I was only 16 so it wasn’t an issue) because of how dreadful I felt.
I very much believe that you on rare occasions it’s ok to ask for a bit of help.

I was on a course yesterday for a piece of equipment and the instructor had conjunctivitis in both eyes

He was handling the equipment which we then had to use

He had used up his sicknesses 'unwisely' he said so had to work. His eyes were streaming!

I'm unemployed for other reasons, but I've had two stonking bad viruses that left me physically unable to get out of bed (I caught both from travelling - one at Christmas and one from a conference) and one episode of D/V since January (no idea where I got that from), I'm thoroughly heartened to hear that this would make me completely unemployable.

I'm looking to go back to work eventually. Obviously I can't be ill when I do that. How do I acquire a better immune system? Can I go on a course?

If he should have phoned himself, then presumably he wouldn't have asked the OP to do. If he did, but was feeling so ill it slipped his mind, then the OP should have been told so she could go and wake him up to do it. She's not signed his contract, I don't see how she can be expected to know what it says.

He needs to call himself. The only time I've had my husband ring on my behalf was because of a bereavement and I couldn't speak without crying. Otherwise, it should always be the person who is ill so that the manager can ask them anything they might need to know and because it's the responsibility of the employee to call in. Get your dh to call.

I have people that go off sick with a bit of a sore throat or bit of a cold. My doctor has said you don’t need to be off sick with a cold. There are viruses in the air all the time and if your immune system is low you will get a cold. Sickness has a massive impact on employers and their ability to provide a service. I have lots of people escalating through the sickness stages because they take lots of small amounts of sickness. On the other hand I have someone with cancer who is likely to be off for the whole year and I am not going through the sickness process as I do have discretion and want to make their life a bit easier.

We pay full pay for 6 months and half pay for 6 months and it is abused. We also pay dependants leave which is unlimited which is also abused. We need to have processes in place to make sure the impact is lessened on our ability to provide an essential service.

@UserV

love how you assume I've never been that ill.

I live alone when I had acute pneumonia I had to call in myself.

I did have my sister call in once when I was hospitalised.

but throwing up all night - even if you have a house full of people who can call for you, it's seen as the professional thing to set the alarm and call yourself. I'm not saying I think it's awful that the OP called. I'm saying it's the norm that you call yourself. Personally I would be much kinder about sickness reporting rules - and I hate that Bradford thing with a passion, those rules just encourage people to go in sick.

but please don't assume I've never been ill enough to want someone else to call. I'm just saying companies hate this.

Magenta "I have people that go off sick with a bit of a sore throat or bit of a cold."

is that a typo? I hate people who to go to work with a cold at our place but that's because we have a good policy of "don't come in when you are sick". In places where they have bloody Bradford, everyone will come in with their colds.

yes germs are in the air all the time - surely that's a reason to avoid adding to them?

I currently have a head cold which is so bad I’ve been in bed for two days with yellow slime pouring out of my face, a pounding headache and throat full of razor wire. Good to know that staying in and not spreading it to my colleagues makes me unreliable... my manager didn’t seem to think so!

@Lighthousesouth

- even if you have a house full of people who can call for you, it's seen as the professional thing to set the alarm and call yourself.

Oh well that's it then. Doesn't matter if you're dying on your feet, you have a dangerously high temperature, you can barely speak, you've thrown up so many times that your ribs ache and you feel like your throat's been cut, and you're unable to even stand up straight; you MUST ring in yourself and tolerate being grilled, and potentially bullied or emotionally blackmailed into work (no matter how sick you are,) because it's 'SEEN AS THE PROFESSIONAL THING TO DO!'

Do bore off!

You are either a manager who is a fucking nightmare to work for and automatically thinks anyone who says they're ill (and needs to have time off work) is a liar. OR you have never actually been ill.

So which is it?

As I said, the only reason they want people to phone in themselves is so they can manipulate and emotionally blackmail and bully - yes BULLY - people into coming in.

No not at all.... our absence line for example is an answer phone!!!

No bullying at all

@Runmummyrun68

Leaving a message saying you are ill and cannot come into work on an answerphone - is a COMPLETELY different argument and is not what people are talking about!!!!

Jesuz! Quit moving the goalposts!!!

Also if it IS an answerphone, someone else can ring in for the sick person.

Personally though, I don't know a single employer who has an answerphone for people to phone in sick. NOPE!

UserV
Im not a manager , and ive had time off sick, every job ive been in it is expected that you ring in unless you are in hospital.

Didnt matter how sick you was.
Ive had s&d and i’ve always rung in myself.

UserV - you are not reading my posts at all.

but there's not much I can do about that.

if you'd actually read them you would see what I think of these so-called "professional" attitudes.

UserV "You are either a manager who is a fucking nightmare to work for and automatically thinks anyone who says they're ill (and needs to have time off work) is a liar. OR you have never actually been ill."

I mean seriously, did you confuse me with someone else?!

I will just restate because I'd hate for any regulars to think this of me

• I'm arguing against the attitude
• I hate the Bradford thing
• I hate the culture that makes people feel they should come in when ill
• I've been ill loads and I never go in - I've nearly lost job offers when they've asked about my sick record in the past
• I am not a manager btw!!

I'm just saying what most companies expect is all the stuff I'm complaining about.

so hopefully to anyone who knows me, that's all clear.

I've spent most of the last 3 days on MN because I'm off sick.....

Surely the level of illness you can go into work with depends on the job. I had an office job where I could easily have "worked" with a heavy cold - by which I mean, I could have sat at my desk and stared at a screen without collapsing. On the other hand, someone who's talking on the phone all day, or serving food, would probably struggle with a sore throat, streaming nose etc."

If I'm Ill I text my manager, we all do and its never a problem.

Of course we have an answerphone!!! We are open 7 days a week with HR in 5 days only 9-5.... we can be in from 6 and close at 9
😂

lighthouse your posts are crystal clear

What were the other sick days for?