Apparently, it's #nationalsickieday.
If you believe the hype, today is the day where the most sick days have been recorded for the last few years.
So there you have it - a day of celebration is declared. Or talked about at least.
Excuses can come in many forms from the sublime to the ridiculous, but all of us have been in the situation where "calling a sickie" has been the only way to get out of a work commitment - and one of the most common reasons for sickies can be to attend a job interview.
Whether it's a job interview you need to attend and you stand no chance of gaining any other legitimate day off at such short notice, or maybe just a case of the lazies, but at some point, we've all practised the sick voice!
Having said that, I think we've possibly had the worst run of general sickness in our office since time began.
Genuinely.
Many have succumbed to the numerous bugs and viruses, in some cases more than once and even some of the ones here today would perhaps have been better at home, Thank you brave little soldiers.
But where do you stand if you think one of your team or a colleague is pulling the wool over your eyes a little too regularly?
How much effect does it have on your productivity, team spirit or even reputation with clients or internal stakeholders?
Where do you stand and how do you manage it?
As a Leader you're within your rights to ask questions as the following article explains.
And how do you get time off at short notice for interviews without having to put on the "sick voice"?
We're into honesty here at PIE, but sometimes being a little too honest could get you into a sticky situation - so perhaps we'd advocate being less generous with the absolute truth in this situation.
We'd suggest something else - anything else - but the sick voice.
“As an employer you are perfectly entitled to challenge the authenticity of an absence; if an excuse seems too far-fetched then ask for evidence if appropriate. If you notice a pattern emerging then you should speak to the employee about their poor attendance and take proactive steps to action it.” It has been claimed that many employees shirk work at the start of February because they are attending a job interview. After using the Christmas holidays as an opportunity to re-evaluate their life and think about their job prospects, workers who are unhappy with their role often spend January considering their next move and then begin the interviewing process for new jobs in February.
Read the original article here