59

My workplace allows employees to take sick leave of up to one week without a doctor's note. Essentially if you think that you shouldn't be around other people or know you won't be able to work you can call in letting your project lead and secretary know and that's it.

I was wondering how much information about my ailment should I be expected to provide in such email? I feel like just saying "I need to take a sick day off today." without further explanation sounds just like an excuse not to come to work. On the other hand, say I get food poisoning, do my colleagues really need to know I'm gonna be spending most of my day on a toilet?

EDIT: I should also probably add that I am asking this less as a legal/rules question and more as in ethics / office expectations / conventions question.

Sanuuu
  • 682
  • 1
  • 5
  • 9
  • 15
    This is culturally dependent and will vary between countries and, likely, workplaces. For example, in Germany it is actually illegal for your employer to chase up details of why you were off sick. – Jack Aidley Jan 23 '17 at 14:54
  • 2
    Remember the keyword "contagious". Adding that is an instant red flag to your boss that having you come in is really not a good idea. –  Jan 23 '17 at 15:34
  • 3
    Think it's very much cultural, even if it's a relaxed policy. My general "taking the day off sick" message is "I'm not feeling so well" and I've not ever heard anyone make a problem of it. – Erik Jan 23 '17 at 16:06
  • 7
    Another good keyword is ‘both ends’. – Robin Whittleton Jan 23 '17 at 16:25
  • 3
    This is one reason I prefer PTO (Personal Time Off) days to sick days. 90% of my sick days are to take care of my kid (which is a valid reason in my jurisdiction) and it is so much nice to just say PTO, rather than explain why I am fine but my kid has a neurologist appointment. – Ukko Jan 23 '17 at 21:59
  • 2
    @Ukko *shrug* "My kid has a medical appointment" seems to be an adequate explanation for your absence, while maintaining your child's privacy. – David Richerby Jan 23 '17 at 23:39
  • 2
    Self reported as opposed to what? Do doctors or other people ever report your sick days for you? – corsiKa Jan 24 '17 at 09:48
  • @corsiKa Germany, for example, does not have a "you can take up to x sick-days"-rule. Instead, you go to the doctor, who gives you a note (The "Krankenschein") that you will be unable to work for X days. Special rules apply if you are sick for long time at once, but beyond those special cases, those sickdays are unlimited in number. – Layna Jan 24 '17 at 13:44
  • @corsiKa As opposed to having to get a note from a doctor to say that you were sick. In the UK, for periods of up to seven days, you can just say that you were sick; for more than seven days, you need a doctor's note. – David Richerby Jan 24 '17 at 14:00
  • In Spain you need a doctor's note ("Parte de Baja") for any general illness absence ("Incapacidad laboral temporal"). Depending on the company you may have one or two days without requiring a doctor's note, but if there are many of such absences in a period of time you may get legally in trouble. You don't need to give details of your illness and doctor's note don't mention it at all. – roetnig Jan 24 '17 at 15:02
  • @corsiKa A lot of western countries that aren't the US have mandatory unlimited sick days. The catch is you mostly need a doctor's note confirming you're sick. – Magisch Jan 24 '17 at 15:07
  • @DavidRicherby in many states that is explicitly not a good enough reason to miss work. For instance here in Minnesota before 2013 you could be forced to use vacation time to care for you child instead of sick time. Thy could also deny the request for vacation if the wanted to. https://www.baillonthome.com/blog/minnesota-workers-can-use-%E2%80%9Csick-days%E2%80%9D-care-loved-ones – Ukko Jan 24 '17 at 15:51
  • @DavidRicherby, Magisch, at my job (11 figure company in Canada) I too had unlimited sick days, but they won't even look at a doctor's note until the third day being out. And when you do get a note, in all honesty, the writing on it is so bad that you can't even read what it says and there's literally never a follow up. I guess my employers have always seen it as a trust thing. – corsiKa Jan 24 '17 at 18:00

7 Answers7

74

Basic explanation is expected : Flu, food poisoning, migraine, whatever.

It's also polite to offer an expectation of how long you'll remain out of action.

There's no hard and fast rules here.

  • 5
    "There's not hard and fast rules here". I disagree. There may be hard and fast rules. If you contract requires specific information, for example. Additionally, if you injure yourself on company time -- you may be obliged to tell them how. – Prinsig Jan 23 '17 at 15:33
  • 5
    @Prinsig - Injuries on company time are usually handled as per company policy and should be reported if it results in time off. For general illness as I gave instructions for, there's no real rules (at least here in the UK) that you have to provide full background checks. This is how I read the spirit of the question. –  Jan 23 '17 at 15:37
  • 22
    Yes. I usually give a couple-of-words description, like "I have a fever" or "I have stomach pains". Often you don't know the exact illness, and I've never had a company expect me to supply the official International Classification of Diseases diagnosis code. If the company allows you a certain number of "honor" sick days every year, it shouldn't be a big deal. Odds are the boss doesn't want to hear a blow-by-blow account of your vomiting and diarrhea any more than you want to tell him. – Jay Jan 23 '17 at 17:14
  • What if it's eventually something that you don't want to say? Do you lie or suddenly become vague? – Kat Jan 23 '17 at 18:47
  • 1
    @Kat - The employer usually doesn't need to know. For the process, they just need to know you're off sick. Details aren't really that important, although some kind of reassurance that it's not serious in nature would be welcome. –  Jan 23 '17 at 19:32
  • 3
    I agree that they don't need to know, but your suggestion is that you give them a general idea of what is going on. What's your suggestion if it is personal, embarrassing, or serious and you don't want to share? Won't it seem strange to suddenly not give any explanation once that happens if you always gave one before? – Kat Jan 23 '17 at 20:22
  • 1
    Then just say something ambiguous, or 'you wouldn't want to know' and leave it at that... –  Jan 23 '17 at 20:29
  • @Kat: hopefully this doesn't happen so often that people know how Kat usually describes her illnesses. – RemcoGerlich Jan 24 '17 at 11:45
  • 1
    In the Netherlands this answer might be off, though sometimes it's considered good to share the reason. It's against privacy to ask. – Mathijs Jan 24 '17 at 12:45
  • 1
    I have never either needed (as an employer) or been needed (as an employee) to provide any information whatsoever. – user207421 Jan 24 '17 at 16:32
  • I suggest adding "upset stomach," to the list. Food poisoning results in this, but there may well be other causes. The fact you feel you can't come to work implies the severity. – jpmc26 Jan 24 '17 at 18:39
  • Kat, give a few symptoms in that case: i.e. "upset stomach", "fever", etc. Jay is spot-on. – FundThmCalculus Jan 24 '17 at 19:09
45

Short answer: The less the better.

Longer answer:

It depends on a number of things.

  1. How often are you calling out?
  2. What is your relationship with your manager?
  3. What is (if there is) any company policy for less than a week?
  4. How personal is the issue?

If you are out with some frequency, it would be a good idea to have something of substance to tell your manager. If you have a good relationship with your manager, then it wouldn't hurt to offer a few details "I caught a cold from my child", "I hurt my back shoveling snow", I've got a doctor's appointment for something minor", "I've got a dentist's appointment".

If there's a company policy requiring a reason, if not a note, of course, you should comply.

Lastly, if the issue is potentially embarrassing, such as anything having to do with urinary or issues dealing with the colon, or anything else you are not comfortable with sharing, just say that you're going in for tests, or something of that nature.

Take those four factors into account, and respond accordingly.

Old_Lamplighter
  • 159,693
  • 108
  • 436
  • 585
9

You don't need to volunteer any more information than you are comfortable with. It is courteous to let them know when you plan to be back, and you should probably provide some context if you are going to be out more than a day or two. Beyond that, it's none of their business.

As long as you are only going to be out for a day, and you aren't abusing the policy, it is absolutely sufficient to simply say "Sorry, I'm not feeling well today and won't be coming in. I plan to be in tomorrow."

Seth R
  • 11,976
  • 5
  • 28
  • 49
3

This will vary between organisations but my general advice is not to provide more context (usually: not feeling well, a bit of flu, migraines etc may be said).

Specific details are at your discretion, if your manager needs to know more then you can have that conversation when you're back at work.

Sophie
  • 651
  • 4
  • 3
1

A good boss won't care as long as it's not the sixth day you're asking. The company has already given you five days at your discretion. Knowing real reasons why doesn't change the fact that you still get to use them at your discretion.

A good boss is also under no illusion that people don't use sick days when they are actually not sick.

Just tell them you're using a sick day, sorry of any inconvenience it may cause, and let them know if you'll be in tomorrow.

If it's busy at the office right now, though, don't use a sick day if you don't really need it. You're part of the team and they depend on you. Be there unless whatever you're doing is important.

  • The way I read the question is not that "the company has already given you five days", but rather how much description to give when informing then on the first day. – RemcoGerlich Jan 24 '17 at 11:47
0

If you don't say anything, your boss will probably assume you have something to hide. For example, perhaps you are unfit because of a hangover after too much drinking the night before. So if you have a simple and good reason for being away, and you don't mind sharing it, then share it: "I got food poisoning" or "I've got a really bad cold and I don't want everyone else getting it". Openness and honesty is always appreciated. If it's something you really don't want to share, then either say nothing or tell a white lie - it's up to you.

As some of the responses here indicate, there are cultures where it is more or less normal for people to "report sick" when they are not sick at all, but have other personal reasons for taking time off. (Similarly there are cultures where it is more or less normal to over-claim expenses.) If that's the situation, then it's very hard to advise: it depends entirely how firm your moral principles are.

Michael Kay
  • 1,762
  • 9
  • 15
-3

Depends, of course, on the illness. But if it is a basic flu, a short explanation is fine.

Draken
  • 9,733
  • 7
  • 47
  • 58
Mika Kujapelto
  • 1
  • 1
  • 3
    Welcome to the Workplace -- appreciate your contribution, but answers here tend to be longer than a single sentence. Can you elaborate on your reasoning? – mcknz Jan 23 '17 at 19:17