It’s the holiday season. Although schools have liberal holiday vacation time, it's also a time of year where stress, overwhelming to-do lists, and an avalanche of other reasons trigger employees’ cashing in some of their sick time. Surveys show that December is the most popular month for calling out of work. While nine in ten employees say they have never faked being sick during the holidays, there’s still that one in ten employees who will cash in some unused time to catch up with the bustle of the season and their own mental health.
If you’re pushing through the craziness of the season from your office, you might have the privilege of personally fielding some of these absentee phone calls. Among claims of the flu, mental health days, and seasonal sniffles, sneezes, and aches, there’s always a handful that deserves an award for most creative.
For the past 10 years, CareerBuilder has published a list of Unbelievable Excuses for Calling in Sick. Here are a few of our favorites:
- "I just put a casserole in the oven."
- "I was sitting in the bathroom and my feet and legs fell asleep. When I stood up, I fell and broke my ankle."
- "I was stuck under the bed"
- "I got stuck in the blood pressure machine at the grocery store and couldn’t get out."
- "I had a gallstone I wanted to heal holistically."
- "I accidentally got on a plane."
- "My false teeth flew out the window while driving down the highway."
- "A ghost in my house kept me up all night."
- "The universe told me to take a day off."
- "The meal I cooked for the company potluck didn’t turn out well."
- "My doctor told me I need more vitamin D, so I’m going to the beach."
On a serious note, employees responding to CareerBuilder’s annual survey reported that 38% have called out sick in 2015 when they felt perfectly fine. This is up from 28% last year (2014). And, 27% of those participating in the survey said they feel obligated to make up an excuse when calling out of work, regardless if they have paid time off that allows them to use their time as they desire.
What are the real reasons for their mini vacation? According to CareerBuilder’s findings of those calling in sick when they felt fine, 27% said they had a doctor's appointment, 27% said they just didn’t feel like going in, 26% said they needed to relax, 21% said they needed to catch up on sleep, and 12% blamed bad weather.
You might not find as much humor in the universe telling one of your teachers to take the day off as casual internet browsers do, and you’re not alone in your lack of praise for creative sick day excuses. One in five employers responding to the survey reported they have fired an employee for calling out of work with fake excuses. And, 24% of employers responded that they have caught employees lying by checking social media.
Remember, your handbooks should dictate how you handle employees calling out of work. Take a look at your school’s policies before acting on even the most ridiculous excuses, because you should also remember that the most common lawsuits schools and organizations face are employee discrimination cases. Yes, the universe telling your teacher to take the day off is pretty absurd. However, they should be reprimanded and filed the same as any employee breaking policy.
Additional ISM resources:
The Source for Business Managers Vol. 10 No. 7 How Much is Sick Time Costing Your School?
The Source for Business Managers Vol. 12 No. 1 Employee Benefits You Might Not Think of as Benefits
Additional ISM resources for Gold Consortium members:
I&P Vol. 35 No. 13 Paid Leave Banks: Compassionate or Risky?
