| Topic Name: |
Sick Day Policy |
| Message Name: |
"Excessive" sick days |
| Date Posted: |
12/18/2001 |
| In Reply To: |
I work for a company that has a stellar reputation looking from the outside but stinks as far as management goes if you actually see what goes on.
I was told this past week (2nd week of December) that my eight (8) sicks days had shown up in HR as "excessive" and if I'm out sick one more time I have to have a doctor's note. I was very angry because there is no sick day policy where I work except that the days shouldn't be "excessive". These days were not balanced against the 4 holidays I worked, the overtime I put in, the reputation I have for excellent quality work, and the fact I haven't even taken all my vacation days this year.
Do other companies have such arbitrary policies where the HR department decides in December what "excessive" is? There was never any written notice of this new policy. I plan on leaving soon because I can't stand the management and lack of communication. |
| Message: |
You hit the nail on the head- what is the company's definition of "excessive?" Companies that use a vague term such as this are rarely challenged by their employees, as the employee might fear the possible repercussions.
Do other companies have sick leave policies containing vague entities such as "excessive," "abuse," and perhaps "overly?" Yes, many companies do.
Vague language and subsequent requirements (doctor's notes)are mere symptoms of the real issue. This is actually a staffing issue, not an attendence issue. Good managers plan for each FTE they hire. Hence, money and resources are allocated for personal time, holiday time, sick time, and vacation. Sadly, however, many managers do not allocate resources for sick time use, and thus, the employee feels the result.
Did you ever notice that people usually are not chastised for "excessive" vacation use? Ironic, isn't it, for the argument could be made that vacation is earned based on hours worked. In many jobs, so is sick time. What's the difference then? Staff planning.
In some companies (if not all), unused sick time is carried on the books, and money must be allocated for it. Some companies will allow employees to cash in sick time in order to reduce the amount of cash they need to have readily on hand. Remember, once you earn the time, and money, it is your money the company is holding, and they really do not want to hold too much.
So now back to your specific situation. Your company obviously has a sick time policy, for they do provide sick time and they do require a doctor's note after the eighth sick day. Whether this policy was adequately and proactively communicated with the employees is a separate issue. Do you have a mechanism to address issues such as this? Surprisingly, many companies do not. As long as the sick policy is not properly defined, management will rely on this vague sick time policy to compensate for their lack of adequate staffing skills.
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