Am I allowed to take today off without employers permission?

[vlarder]

I work remotely for a large company. Due to insomnia, I've essentially been working 18 hours a day for the past week. I enjoy my job and have plenty of work to do.

I've just had my last meeting and everything (and a bit more0) is pretty much in hand.

AIBU to take the day off and just periodically check emails?

Come on OP, of course you know this isn't OK. You can't just down tools for the day.

Sounds fine to me especially if you're checking emails. but I work somewhere that has formal flexi so it's normal. Can you not let your boss know?

Do you have a manager?

Working 18 hour days, needs addressing - are you getting any support for your insomnia?

I would say YANBU but I've been lucky to work for a company that has an ethos of not penalising efficiency..They want the job done and done well..If you can do that in less time amd make sure you stay on top of things too, take a breather.

Not every company is like that though.

I've done some loooooong days for the past 2 weeks and I've just finished the huge project that caused them. I've emailed my boss and told him I'm done for the week. It works like that at our place though, not all work places are like that

But you should not be working 18 hour days. If you have insomnia take the time you should be sleeping to relax. Working will just make things worse.

I would do it, yes. I would absolutely not have done the 18 hours days though, no even one.
Isn’t there anything except work you would like to do if you can’t sleep?!

I can't sleep - I actually prefer to work as opposed to scrolling on Amazon for hours

Having insomnia doesn’t mean you have to work all your waking hours though.

Do you work flexitime/core hours ? Otherwise, your employer will be expecting you to work during business hours, regardless of what you chose to do out of business hours.

I'm limited to what i can do, I'm pretty much confined to my bedroom as I don't want to disturb the others in the house.

I aim to use this weekend to retrain my body slightly

my hobby/interests align very closely with my job

You can’t choose to work extended hours and then claim a day off on the quiet as compensation! Fine to chat with your boss and see if they agree you can work reduced hours today to balance things up but unreasonable to make that decision for yourself if it’s not your usual way of managing your time

Can you get a call with your manager, explain that you’ve been working 18 hour days due to insomnia so you’re done with everything and get their clearance to log off for the day?

That seems reasonable. If you don’t think they’d grant it if you asked, it’s probably not a great idea to do it, just incase something happens that means they find out.

Do sort the insomnia, though. I used to have a similar problem, and I work in a field close to my interests too, so reading and things were all related. It felt like I worked all the time. I made an effort to do some things that weren’t work related - cycling, working out, reading books that were in no way related to work, planning things for weekends - and I’ve got my edge back, I work less but am much more productive and I feel a lot healthier for it.

I wouldn’t mention it. As long as the work is done and you’re available if needed then I don’t see the problem.

If you're up to date it sounds like there wouldn't be a problem - but you shouldn't just do it without asking permission.

What you need to do is address why you're working such long days, as that's not something you need to put up with.

As long as you're still checking emails I don't see the problem.

Without a conversations with your manager- no- sorry, it isn't acceptable. The extra hours you've been doing are your choice, not ore arranged. You can't just arbitrarily decide to take time off, because you've arbitrarily decided to work more hours. If your manager is happy for you to do so, by all means, but it's not your decision to take time off.

This is fine depending on role /culture. It would be fine in my role in my company, and I do it, the objective is the work, not the hours

However the fact you need to ask indicates it is not alright in your role or company,

Rather depends on your role and how autonomous you are

Not really without their permission. Just speak to them, say your hours are done this week and can you take the day partially off but check emails each 30mins to an hour so nothing is missed that might crop up

It would be fine for some employers but a serious disciplinary issue for others.

Wouldn't it be best asking your employer for today/the afternoon off rather than Mumsnet?

If you're all up to date with your work and don't have any meetings or need to be available for clients etc, it seems fine to take some time off, but your employer needs to agree this unless you are sufficiently senior that you are allowed to make this decision entirely at your own call.

I'd say why not, you definitely sound like a very good asset to the company and if you're checking emails, you sound very diligent and responsible :) (I might have done this at the end of a very crazy week... ;)

Depends on your company culture and your relationship with your manager. I would have thought it would have been courteous / professional to let your manager know your plans. The fact you haven't makes me wonder if you know they'd have an issue with it.

My job isn’t very busy and I sit on the sofa with my laptop open to check my one or two emails a day.