Sick days - at what point do you consider it habitual?

[neurosis]

So if you have someone who calls in sick an average of 20 times a year, do you consider that habitual?

I know that some people rarely ever call in sick and may be biased.   

[JParis]

So if you have someone who calls in sick an average of 20 times a year, do you consider that habitual?

If it's some kind of continuing "health" issue that's one thing...if someone can't document a "real" issue, that's a different beast completely

Where I am at now, we don't have "vacation" or "sick" time, it's all PTO time.  I can be out 23 days a year at this point.

[pmartin]

I'd ask myself, is it always on a Monday? If so then probably.

[neurosis]

I'd ask myself, is it always on a Monday? If so then probably.

A majority of the time the call in is on a Monday.

The guy doesn't drink or do drugs however so it's not a drinking or drug problem.

[neurosis]

If it's some kind of continuing "health" issue that's one thing...if someone can't document a "real" issue, that's a different beast completely

There is no chronic health issue. It's usually "I have a stomach ache" or "I couldn't sleep last night".

[JParis]

There is no chronic health issue. It's usually "I have a stomach ache" or "I couldn't sleep last night".

Well, if the company policy is being abused and the offender is evidently "habitual".....if I am his/her manager, we're having a talk about the behavior needs to change.

Then let them know, "you are not meeting company expectations and continued absences will require the company to take actions" and "if the behavior does not improve they would be warned and can lead to being let go"

Much though depends on documented company policy.

[gcode]

A majority of the time the call in is on a Monday.

The guy doesn't drink or do drugs however so it's not a drinking or drug problem.

does his wife know he's calling in sick? He may have a girlfriend on the side.
When I was a kid I worked a graveyard shift in a Coors beer can plant
Phone calls in or out were for life and death emergencies only in those days
One night an emergency call came in for one of the guys on my can line.
My foreman had the hard task of telling the woman that her husband had quit 6 months ago

[Flycut]

Since Covid the numbers have gone up.
Seems like you don't even need to fake beeing sick anymore.
Just call in and say you have a headache.

[gcode]

Since Covid the numbers have gone up.
Seems like you don't even need to fake beeing sick anymore.
Just call in and say you have a headache.

Yup.. get the covid vaccine and you can call in 3 days straight cause you had a "reaction"
no questions asked.
We are having a terrible time with people now.. they don't come in, call in sick, don't want to work if they do show
We've had a half dozen quit and leave the state and another half dozen get poached by other companies
They don't pay as well but when you factor in $6 gas it's a better job for some
For the youngsters starting out, unemployment or working in an Amazon warehouse pays almost as well and is much less work
We were slow for 2 years, but managed to not lay anyone off.
Now things are picking up and we have idle machines cause there is no one available to run them

[Jon@NOWHERE]

It could be anxiety.  I have anxiety that only seems to happen at night, if I start to overthink things like a pain in my chest or something similar.  I start to focus on it and then the fear of dying creeps in and I won't be able to go to sleep or end up making myself sick and get absolutely no sleep.  It's sporadic, I have had maybe 4-5 episodes so far this year.  I don't miss work because of it, but I am a lot slower on those days because I am operating on less than a couple of hours of sleep.  He may be embarrassed because of it.

[neurosis]

Much though depends on documented company policy.

That's probably part of the problem. Since the owner died and the son took over, I'm not sure what the company policy even is anymore. I've been here since 1994 and there used to be a hand book that was given out prior to hiring.  It would probably help if the owner would take the time to write out some kind of formal company policy.

[neurosis]

Now things are picking up and we have idle machines cause there is no one available to run them

This is the problem we're having right now. It's difficult to find employees and it really hamstrings us when 1 person calls in more than the rest of the entire shop combined.  We're a small shop so 1 person is 15% of the work force.  20+ call-ins a year makes scheduling almost impossible.

It's difficult to get anyone to come in for an interview, and when they do, they want journey level pay to be a button pusher.

Times are definitely changing.

[neurosis]

It could be anxiety.

This guy has worked here for close to 15 years.  If he gets an ingrown toenail he will call in saying that he can't walk. It's not anxiety. 

He called in sick two days in a row one year and when he came in later that week, he had a sun burn. The owner at the time asked how he got the sun burn if he was sick. He said that the doctor told him to go out and get some sun.     

This guy just doesn't want to work.

[Del.]

I like to call in and say " I feel so good today I'm not going to fuck it up by coming into work today "

[mayday]

I like to call in and say " I feel so good today I'm not going to fuck it up by coming into work today "

and what does the Boss at Good Will say?