Smart Spending

The Best Ways to Call in Sick

At some point during your working career you are going to have to call in sick.  No matter how careful to avoid germs by washing your hands or meticulously cleaning your house, the fact is we all get sick.  When it happens many employees are faced with a dilemma.  Missing work has had such a negative stigma it has caused an alternate dilemma called “presenteeism.”   By refusing to miss work, those who are perpetually present despite their illness can actually cause more harm than good.  They get less work done and cause others to be infected thus causing even more time lost.  Instead of risking the health of the whole company, take some time to learn the best ways to call in sick.

Before even thinking about calling in sick, know that the first rule is to be legit.  Abusing the privilege of taking a sick day will only make it harder when you actually are sick and need the day off.

Most likely you will know that you are sick before the day begins.  So set your alarm to wake up when you know your supervisor or manager will be in the office.  Catching them first thing will give them the most time possible to find a replacement if needed.

If you cannot reach them via phone, try to send a text message.  This will get to them the quickest.  Often leaving a voicemail and a text is a good idea in order to double up the chances of your notification being received on time.  If nothing else is available send a quick email, tell them it is ok to call for clarification.

When you do get in touch with them, tell them briefly what the situation is.  It is called a personal day for a reason.  They just need to know that you are not feeling well enough to work, and you will need to have the day off.

Calling in is as simple as that.  There is nothing wrong with getting sick; it happens to everyone.  If you are a good employee and you are not abusing the privilege, you have nothing to worry about.  If you have an understanding boss, you should be able to get the day off without problems.  Your biggest obstacle will most likely be getting over your own desire to be at work every day.   If you are lying about being sick, you have to worry about being fired.  If you are sincere about being sick, and you are not trying to weasel your way out of work, you can be confident.  Be prepared to work a little harder for a few days after you get back to work to show that you were taking some time off to refresh in order to be more productive for the company.

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