Workers Punished for Calling in Sick

“I really need help. My new boss is trying to get rid of me. She's been with the company two months (I've been with the company 7 months) and has been coming down hard on everyone. To make matters worse, her boss yelled at me (with her on the call) two weeks ago, and my father had a stroke and then I got sick. My first day back at work she's all on me by email. You should have done xyz. But she won't respond to my emails or questions. And when she does, she blames me. I've bee”

“I am feeling very depressed. I’ve been sick for many years but especially the last four my health has significantly worsened and now as a 2nd year PhD student in biomedical engineering I am forced to go on medical leave. I don’t know if all ever get better or if I’ll continue to worsen and end up more and more housebound. I continue to worry about if I even have a future, but somehow I’m still worrying about my lab and if I’ll even have a lab to come back to. My lab was a mess before I left and”

“Firstly I want to state I know that many women returning to work after mat leave have had a much worse experience. I'm just looking for some advice on how to navigate the situation I am in and of anyone else had similar experience. I went on mat leave January 2025 for 12m. My mat cover was someone in my team and I was happy to have him cover. Time off was fine, very little contact from anyone at work which I thought was normal. It got to September and I asked about kit days. Shortly after as”

“Hello. I suffer from what we suspect is IBS that has gotten worse over the years, and I end up vomiting or have diarrhea most days. I know technically if I vomit I am supposed to be sent home. However I am unsure what the exact laws are and if there are excepts for chronic illness. I suspect not in Illinois(which I think is a good thing, I’m not really complaining, just unsure what to do at this point) People with chronic vomiting issues who have spent their life in food service, what do you do?”

“I got bacteria pneumonia from helping respiratory roll a vented patient - the tube popped off and sprayed right in my face. Two weeks later I was admitted with 103 F temp and my O2 was 85%. I missed two days of work for being admitted to the hospital I was hired at and was put in a PIP and lost points (we have a point system for absences).”

“Same position. Waiting for Bonus payout. Don't think I can survive a second busy season”

“I would recommend going with I needed to search for a role with better work life balance…which is true because it was impacting your health. You are not required to disclose your personal health issues.”

“I think it's time for you to take some sick days. They think you don't know so they won't be thinking the sick days are you taking the piss”

“"They were unable to provide reasonable accommodations for a temporary medical condition, which is now resolved"”

“I feel absolutely devastated today. I thought that I was doing a bit okay and my boss just told me to go home today and I saw my name removed from the schedule for the next week. I have been looking for a job for six months and I got hired two days ago but today the boss told me to go home today and that I am done being there. I asked about the reasons and she said that she will call me later on to discuss the next steps. I feel so devastated and embarrassed about this. What can I do? I have so”

“I just looked into the law of my country... it is against the law to terminate someone due to illness even when just joined and i literally could have sued. I dont need more opinion from you.”

You get 30 minutes?

I got away from the 12 hr shifts and found a Mon-Fri day job

“'you may be expected to work additional hours where the business requires...' Yup, once again, same thing. Word for word. I had foolishly assumed that the consequence of "not working additional hours when the business requires..." was "they'll fire you" It blew my mind when I burnt out so hard that I had no choice but to just step away and ignore them that the actual consequence of it was "they start to respect you" It's counterintuitive, but the dev”

“I worked in a production type job where there were many annoyances/negatives to the job. One of main things was that they expect you to be able to come in early and/or stay late at a moments notice. The last year I worked there, I worked 3000 hours which is 12 hours- 5 days per week. Of the 15 man crew 6 of the guys had worked there over 20 years and the rest of us were 1-4 years. I left 2 years ago and there is only one of the younger guys left and all the old guys are still there. I don’t get”

“Hi, long-time lurker here. Since April I have been working at a toxic customer service job that has been negatively impacting my mental health. I'm also getting a lot less hours than I was promised and can no longer break even with my expenses. My manager has been pretty firm on the hours I'm being given, yet still expects me to have full-time availability. I'm therefore thinking of leaving this job for another. The problem is that I don't know how to approach my resume now, give”

“Does your contract mention being on call? Have a talk with your manager, either get a raise or this has to stop. Or, leave…”

“That’s super smart, I’ll definitely reach out to HR and see if they have anything leads!”

“March 2025, my psychiatrist took me out of work due to my severely declining mental health. It was the worst year of my life. I got treatment and am in a somewhat better place. I saw my dr each month for the paperwork to be completed keeping me out of work. I saw my dr around the end of Oct like normal. November 19, I got an email stating my paperwork wasn’t received on Nov 2 so they fired me. Then in March after months of rejection, I finally got a discharge planner job at a small behavioral he”

“Hi, so Wednesday I was off for work and me and my bf went to my store to eat lunch that day bc I get a 100% discount. I didnt work at all that day but I felt fine ya know? Said hi to my manager etc etc. Fast forward to the morning after.... I wake up at 4am on Thursday, my shift is from 5:00 PM to 10:30 PM I feel like absolute shit. Nose is clogged, head pounding, throat RAW as a bitch. My nose started bleeding after blowing it too hard. I threw up THRICE. I call my bf and he feels the same way.”

“I would just go home and call out the next day. Hospitals need to suffer when their staff is not well protected.”

“What are you all doing for people who come to the ER asking for a work note that they never got from a prior visit essentially “clearing” them to go back to work? Aka I wasn’t the original provider that saw them at the time of the injury/or complaint. Are we liable if something gets injured again while at their job? Also, what do your work notes say when they ask for time off during the ER visit? Ours says “may return to work on x date” but how do we actually know they are safe to go back?”

“I’m currently in specialty oncology mail order but the Mon to Fri grind has taken a toll on me and with the meager PTO accrual it’s hard to find time off outside the weekend so I’ve been applying to the above listed role. Any pharmacists that are currently 7d on 7 d off overnight, how was the transition? And what was the differential? submitted by /u/taarec10 [link] [comments]”

Might as well try it no?

“I did this for a while, and I feel like it really spiraled my mental health. Not to give you any ideas lol. My bosses always made me feel guilty (“when I was your age, I had 3 jobs!” “Come on, you’re young!”) and I never want to be seen as lazy because I’m truly NOT, but I was young and didn’t know how to stand up for myself yet. I think adding one in here and there is good. Stack that paper. But forcing yourself to pick up for the sake of picking up did not work out for me personally.”

“I split my leave into two sets. I’m nearing my last set and about to go on leave again, while I support my wife transitioning back to work. And I am not at all looking forward to it. My son is now 14 weeks, and in a lot of ways is developing well, but he has been a severely colicky baby and the “oh just wait until X week” has stopped giving us hope. We’ve passed those weeks, and he’s still quite difficult. He’s highly social, has severe reflux, and is now in his hyper Velcro stage. We have a nan”

“IT worker here and I often have days with not much to do and feel guilty about it. Then I remember what an old coworker told me. We are like firemen. Firemen don't fight fires 40 hours per week but when there is a fire they get it handled. It all evens out for me as I work after hours or on weekends when the need arises.”

“Hi, I have a severe tooth ache from a failed filling/broken molar. Its literally 8-9/10 pain and I've been going to work as normal while waiting for my appointment (which is tomorrow) and just taking an obscene amount of T1S/naproxen/ibuprofen. For context, Im a barber and my job requires talking basically 8 hours a day, standing on my feet. Ive taken so many Tylenol 1s I legitimately feel loopy. Im really scared they won't be able to do anything tomorrow because of infection or somethin”

“I feel kind of guilty and I'm wondering what other people think. I took a sick day on Tuesday because I had the flu. I went back to work on Wednesday, but I still wasn't feeling well and ended up asking to leave early. Only reason i went to work was because I’d feel guilty taking two sick days in a row and I thought i’d be able to push through the day, but unfortunately couldn’t after finishing up picking orders in the fridge. Now it's the next day and I'm still feeling sick. I d”

“Feeling it for you! Never considered this issue before….”

“I'm extremely guilty of this - working on my phone during dinner, stressing 24/7, and feeling like any time not spent on the project is time wasted etc. Just wanted to share that it's okay to take some time off, and in fact, you'll be even more productive afterwards after a good reset/rest so don't beat yourself over it =) submitted by /u/hydroflame7 [link] [comments]”

“Hello. I am not sure if I’m in the right space for this. I work as a tech in an independent pharmacy and it’s been a living hell. The AC has been broken for weeks and the pharmacy has regularly hit over 80, 90 degrees Fahrenheit. I’ve been waiting as I’m told “it’s in the works” but I’m kinda sick of it. I’m waiting for the pharmacy board to reach me about my complaint, but do I have rights to not show up and not get reprimanded? I don’t feel safe dispensing meds I KNOW aren’t stored properly. M”

“I am genuinely so upset rn. I work as a research coordinator and was supposed to take my mcat on July 24 but my time off request was denied. I purposefully did it weeks in advance. I wish they would’ve told me about the denial before the 10 day deadline yesterday. As of now I fear my only other option is to register for August 15. Is this too late for this cycle? If anyone has any advice I’m all ears! Literally the only thing I’m missing is my mcat. My applications already been verified😔 Edit*”

“Just wanted some feedback on if anyone has dealt with PPD and worked. I'm about to quit my job. I've been on short term disability since May when I walked into the ER and told them I wanted to die. I'm doing therapy and they upped my medication and some days are fine! Completely fine, and then other days are so, so bad. I can't imagine going back to work once my disability pay is over at the end of the month. My job keeps asking me, "but you are coming back, right?" So”

“I've had extreme fatigue and mcas from catching mono a few years ago and I ended up having to work through the worst of it at my minimum wage job. I now have chronic issues from the stress and the combination of having mono plus Covid on top of it all. I was talking to my therapist, trying to get them to understand what kind of pain I'm going through, that it's so bad some days I pass out if I leave the house, that I have trouble even going to the grocery store and there is no one to”

“My hours at work have been reduced significantly for the last six months following an incident report. I have not been fired. I am currently on leave for an injury that happened at work. My hours were being reduced before my injury. I was removed from the schedule prior to submitting my leave request. Has anyone here ever had something similar happen and is comfortable sharing their experience? submitted by /u/RenRecruits [link] [comments]”

“Sorry im just looking to vent after a very strange day. I’m not looking for people to tell me to quit. I have been out of a job for 6 months and I need anything I can get to stay on top of bills for my family since our savings is almost completely depleted. I’ve already decided to start looking for a new job but I’ve never been in a more sketchy unprofessional environment my first day. It all started during the hiring process. I am in sales and always ask “What type of resources will I be given”

“I have a sore throat, my head hurts, runny nose, diarrhea. No fever though. I might be able to work tomorrow but I do not feel 100%. I got an email a few months ago that if I call in it will be my third one and they will give me a verbal warning so that gives me some anxiety, yet I’ve seen others at my work call in a lot more than I have and they are still there. A lot of people have been calling in this week because I think there’s something going around, as they keep asking if anyone would lik”

“I guess reading most of the comments here… it is. I feel guilty about it just because I don’t do well at taking days off. I literally went back to work two weeks after a full hysterectomy because I get guilt about taking off work.”

“It was the cheapest and closest hole in the wall urgent care. I declined everything they wanted to do. I literally just needed the doctor's note.”

“Taking any kind of rest is frowned upon where I work. They're not stupid enough to antagonise you in writing, but I watched someone come into work after a sick leave day, explain how bad he was and what medication he was taking and how he's still not 100%, and they wouldn't even look at him or acknowledge what he was saying. They did something similar with me for taking vacation leave. My manager saw the leave request and asked me if I'm going somewhere, quite stone-faced and une”

submitted by /u/moriagoblin23 [link] [comments]

“My husband has been having some unexplained heart issues/chest pains for the past week and spent Sunday in the ER getting tests, etc., with no clear answer as to why. He's saying he's not sure if he can get through the day of work today. I'm pregnant with our first child, and we have a significant mortgage, so I'm getting really worried about what will happen if he's unable to work. I work full-time as well, but I can't cover our bills and mortgage by myself. I'm hopi”

“I recently got a job at a Wendy's everything was okay until my stomach was hurting the past couple work shifts I had. Plus i was put on overnight shifts so I was exhausted and I thought I was texting my manager. Yes I know I could've sent a text to my manager after I fully realized I forgot but I was on and off sleeping the whole day. I had sent a picture to my Manager of my temperature this morning and informed her that I was going to the Doctors later today. But with how my manager sen”

“im just so annoyed with the whole system. my teachers say to just be careful, my school nurse says they wont exempt me without a doctors note, and my doctor says they wont give me a note because "'since ive been doing it before its not strenuous so its good, actually', do i have any options here?? its so uncomfortable and honestly makes me so sore sometimes after but i dont feel like im being given any choices 💀😭 submitted by /u/Wildcompass5177 [link] [comments]”

“So long story short, on Wednesday I received a call from my father that my other parent was in the emergency room. So I immediately high-tailed it from my job. I work as a field engineer, so I was a ways away. I drove towards the hospital which was about an hour away from my current jobsite, and halfway through I stopped at the satellite office to drop off a densometer and some concrete cylinders. To drop them off at the *correct* office would take me the opposite direction from the hospital fro”

“I’m not in nursing, but when I worked in hotels my manager would try to have us find our own replacement if we couldn’t make it. I was in the er and she told me that. I was like f uuuu”

“Of course I stress about this all the time, and while comparing myself to others is not very useful (as everyone's situation is different - supportive employer, finances, supports, etc), I am curious if my experience is.....relatable to anyone ? I think the past few years, I've taken off about 70-90 days/year on average. Sometimes I only take 2-3 days at a time, but more often than not if I'm off, it's for 1-2 weeks at a time, and longest absence was 9 weeks (not including the 2”

“I am a 27 F. I had been working at this fine dining restaurant for 5 years. I was a lead host for most of it. I was also an event coordinator. I always tried to be positive and say yes to everything. Financially, I wasn’t doing well so I asked to serve. I was told that I would; however, month after month went by and the promise never held up. I became very unhappy. Guests never saw it, but my coworkers noticed it. I felt like I was a doormat. I would get yelled at and mistreated by coworkers, so”

“I’m currently 17 weeks pregnant. I’ve been sick for nearly the entire pregnancy and the fatigue is very severe. I’ve posted about this before, truth is, I’m scared. I’ve been at my job for four months. I found out I was pregnant literally the night before my first day. I got moved into an office job, one where the manager was not transparent about the job hours. My shifts are typically 11 hours, 5-6 days a week. I have two back to back scheduled Saturdays coming up, so that’s 66+ hour work weeks”

“Today I took a sick leave because of stomach pain. The first thing my team leader asked when I called her was "is it really that bad? are you sure you're really sick and not because you want to hang out with your boyfriend? I don't want you to skip work unreasonably. Think about how much it costs us when one person is missing from the spot. Since you will have 3 days off after this, I have every right to question you". Then she asked me to send a photo of my medical certificate”

This isn’t safe for you or your patients.

calling in sounds way harder when you say “i feel so guilty

“Yep, I am gonna get fired for refusing overtime while everyone else goes home. I'll just work at McDonalds or Wendys. submitted by /u/Different_Archer8879 [link] [comments]”

submitted by /u/Similar-Interest-815 [link] [comments]

“I work in healthcare at an organization that's currently going through a major transition due to an acquisition. Over the past several months, we've had significant staffing shortages with many providers and staff leaving. I've been with my employer for about a year and have never had any disciplinary action or performance concerns. In fact, my written warning even acknowledged that my contributions to the department have been substantial. One employee in another department became cr”

“I'm an HR professional in California, and I'm curious how other HR practitioners handle this situation. Let's say an employee has an attendance issue no call/no show, late arrival, tardiness, or an unscheduled call-out. At the time of the occurrence, they don't mention any protected reason, and they don't appear to be on any protected leave (FMLA/CFRA, ADA accommodation, protected sick leave, etc.). My normal process is to meet with the employee and ask what happened before d”

“I work in a meat dept, I work my butt off and get payed the least. I don’t take my 2-15 minute breaks becuase I’m stressed I won’t be able to get everything done and if I don’t I will get chewed out. We only have 4 employees total, Me, my manager(good worker) my assistant manager (he’s around 60 so he’s very slow) and 1 journeymen meat cutter who only cares about him and is super delusional. Then there’s me, working to my max to the point I know I can’t do anymore on a daily basis but for them i”

“Just a little vent - I currently have the flu or something. Idk exactly but I’m nauseous, have diarrhea, my whole body aches but I still have to come in to work. “Just wear a mask” they say. I’m the only dental tech and the only RVT at my practice. We have a dental today so I have to come in. We have dentals every day(not complaining - it’s what I love to do) but we’re booked out for months so if I don’t come in, the pet’s pre anesthetic bloodwork will expire and the owner will have to pay for l”