I have worked several places over the years and usually have no problem at all with calling in sick. None. They understand and we have sick days, so I get paid. I do not make it a habit, so that might help.

My wife works part-time at a restaurant about 2 nights a week. She has been there 3+ years. In the last month we have had sickness running all through our our house, either me or her, or the boys. So she has called in a couple times. Last night she decided she was not feeling like going to work, and my work gave us free tickets to a concert and hot air balloon show. I even met one of the hot air balloon folks and they were going to give us a sweet tour of their stuff, which we figured our boys would love to do.

So my wife called in and said we were having car trouble and she couldn't come in. Well they called tonight and said they want a receipt as proof that we had some work done. Fuck that, I told her she should tell them where to stick that fucking receipt. Have you had issues with a part-time employer giving you shit about taking time off? They said she put them in a bind because their 39 year old cook got his ass beat by one of the 20 year old waitresses he is fucking. She got arrested and he went to the hospital. But my wife was the one that put them in a bind.

What would you do? Tell them to fuck off or try and cover up for it some more? Whats the worse they can do, not let her come in 2 nights a week anymore? God forbid. Sorry, just wanted to vent and see if anybody else had dealt with bullshit like this in an employer.

5/18/2008 7:51:01 PM

sounds like you got busted and need to grow up.

5/18/2008 7:54:41 PM

Oh noes, I got called out. Boo hoo.

5/18/2008 7:55:51 PM

This is North Carolina. They can ask for that receipt if they want it. The worst they could do is fire her and then she'll have to find a new job.

5/18/2008 7:56:29 PM

the boss might already know what went down

5/18/2008 7:57:33 PM

I know they can. Just don't understand an employer that lets people come in drunk and high all the time and constantly rehire them when they steal and cheat the employer. I really don't care to have her working somewhere like that anymore to be honest. I've been trying to get her to find something else and I hope this is what decides it for her.

^Doubtful, unless we were somehow in the paper at the show. Would be my luck though.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 8:01 PM. Reason : ]

5/18/2008 7:58:19 PM

Sounds like she decided to lie to the boss on the wrong day. Rather than getting pissed you guys should realize that what you did was wrong and you're getting called out. If the employer is really that bad consider it her chance to just walk away and find something else. The only thing that sucks is she now won't have a good reference for the past three years of work.

5/18/2008 8:01:12 PM

No offense, but I think you might be on the wrong side with this one.

Your wife works 2 nights a week. But she's been calling in sick a lot recently. And she wants to call in sick again??

I've worked in lots of bars and restaurants with part-time employees. The restaurants counts on those part time employees because without those 2 nights a week they work, then some other full-time person usually has to pull in another shift and they're working overtime. Sounds like the boss is getting tired of paying overtime to his other employees, or maybe the other employees are getting tired of filling in for your wife.

Sounds like your wife needs to suck it up or look for another job.

5/18/2008 8:01:23 PM

seems like that is just the food industry. i mean after having worked in the food industry for 3+ years wouldn't she be familiar with it by now. yes, they rehire burnt out losers and do a lot of stupid shit. but it is what it is. seems like if she gets fired it might be the BEST thing for you guys. my former employer made me work with pink eye. i thought it was fucked up because that shit is ultra contagious but i'd been on meds and yea, it sucks to be on the other end of that and be the person that DOES show up to work only to find out that its going to be a short-staffed night. that blows. i always hated people that did that. it wasn't anything personal its just i go to work unless i'm literally incapacitated and i would appreciate if others would do the same.

but if the employer is that bad, maybe it is the best thing if she leaves or is fired. and maybe the reason she got reprimanded even though the burn out druggie losers don't, is because her employer KNOWS what kind of employee she is and actually expects something of her.

5/18/2008 8:08:44 PM

She usually gets folks to cover for her and trade days. So she doesn't leave them out to dry. This was probably the first or second time she had called in a little before work and had nobody that could work for her.

And yea she is tired of the food industry. Thats why she is going back to college now, and has been for the last year. I am just telling her to stop work altogether and focus on school. She is the one that wants to work. I want her to hurry up and get her degree so she can start teaching.

5/18/2008 8:12:01 PM

hourly places, especially a place like a restaurant, are always going to be dbags about calling out.

5/18/2008 8:34:13 PM

Quote :

"sounds like you got busted and need to grow up."

example for the kids?

5/18/2008 8:39:22 PM

I haven't read the thread

but how would a receipt prove anything? it's possible you fixed it yourself and possible to fake a receipt.. I just think it's idiotic to even ask for one.

5/18/2008 9:02:34 PM

yeah, pretty rampant in foodservice, but what can you do? i actually got fired for being sick in the bathroom at work when i was supposed to be on the floor. that wasn't the real reason, but they said i was 'unreliable' and cut me loose. (real reason: new management decided to pay bartenders $5 rather than $8.50 and used any excuse to can the expensive people. i was the last one standing, fwiw.)

if you all need the extra income, there are plenty of other places to work. not all managers are dicks.

5/18/2008 9:11:50 PM

Sounds like she is on their shit list already so there is no point in going back even if she is not fired. I mean once the managers start treating you like that there is not really any turning back.

My manager did that to me at Best Buy when I was full time there. The thing was I had chronic tonsillitis at the time and usually was running a ~102 fever when I called out of work.

Once I was at work and was getting so sick I was lightheaded and off balance, I told them what was going on and they were like umm let me check if you can leave. I would have walked out if they had not said to go home.

After a few weeks of this off and on they cornered me about it as if I was bullshitting them and asked for a doctors note. Funny enough I had a stack of receipts in my car from the Dr and a bunch of specialists and threw them on the desk.

You just have to understand there are certain industries where the management is not exactly known for professionalism or understanding. The restaurant business is a prime example.

5/18/2008 9:29:57 PM

Thats what I said Schep. When she explained it, she told him it was a friend of mine that works at Firestone that did it. Hell if I wanted to drag this out, I could get the guy to call and cover for me. He's a former coworker and I went to school with his daughter. But I just think its bullshit to ask for that is all. If your gonna call her out just say I think your bullshitting me.


And yes this is working out great so far. She has found an opening at SECU as a part-time teller, and is already well qualified for the position. She is going to jump on that job.

5/18/2008 9:42:18 PM

That's called a personal day. You were deceptive and dishonest. Don't try to throw it back on the employer. Man up.

5/18/2008 9:52:46 PM

Quote :

"You were deceptive and dishonest."

What kind of example does this set for your children?

5/18/2008 9:55:04 PM

Yep. A 4 and 1 year old know mommies schedule at work and are completely understanding.

I could give a shit what you think of my decision. It was mine. It was a last second thing and I thought that the boys would learn more from a family event and hot air balloon show than sitting the fuck at home with me, so I told her to call in. So take your condescending attitude and go fuck yourself.

5/18/2008 10:05:38 PM

Haha. Whatever. Not sure what you wanted out of this, but you don't have a leg to stand on morally, ethically, legally, etc. She could have just asked for a personal day instead of lying about it. Are we supposed to feel sorry for you or relate to your situation in some way?

5/18/2008 10:09:40 PM

you should have kept this thread to yourself

5/18/2008 10:11:41 PM

If you preach "Tell the truth" to your children, then turn around and lie to your boss, those kids are gonna get confused.

I know they don't understand what's going on now.

But if your actions and words contradict each other later on, it *will* make a lasting impression on your children.

5/18/2008 10:17:41 PM

You come up here looking for support, people tell you exactly what the think, you don't like it and whine and bitch. Man up and set a good example for your kids.

5/18/2008 10:21:35 PM

I thought it was going to be about them refusing to grant a sick day when someone was really sick, not when they wanted to go to hot air balloon day.

Also, the escalation of the lie (getting an old friend involved) reminds me of that Seinfeld episode where George claimed he had a house in the Hamptons. Actually, the whole situation reminds me of that. You got caught in a lie and rather than owning up, you are digging deeper and deeper. Haha.


[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 10:33 PM. Reason : ]

5/18/2008 10:22:56 PM

Haha. Your wife works two days a week and she uses sick days to go balloon riding. Nice thread.

5/18/2008 10:30:08 PM

dude, when you work a part-time job in a restaurant, you don't really get "sick" days. you're a waitress, and you're given a shift to work because they need the shift covered. when you aren't there it makes the restaurant operate at less than 100%. when you work in that kind of industry, you don't get to call in sick and expect everything to be OK. if they want proof that's their business, because you (or your wife) are part-time and don't get the benefits that other full-time employees get.

besides, this is a moot point. you called in with car trouble just so you could go to a concert and go for a hot air balloon ride. you deserve to lose your job.

5/18/2008 10:35:02 PM

Why would you lie to your boss?

5/18/2008 10:46:36 PM

Y'know what folks? It's called a mental health day. And sane people need them every once in a while, regardless of the kind of job they work.

Oh dear god, we have a woman who mothers 2 children, works part time in addition to her husband's full time job, and called out ONE extra day for a family evening.

Yessirree, we have the fucking epitomee of irresponsibility here. Tearing down the fabric of america I'm sure.

Get off your highhorses all of you, unless you can promise me that 1. you never did this or 2. you never did this with a college class and 3. you will never do this.

I can't say #2. I can say #1, but I also have worked mostly at jobs before where as long as I do not have to leave in the middle of the day/before a deadline I don't have to justify it. Not everybody gets that luxury.


No, it's not right to lie to your boss and I don't vouch for it, but stop acting like she robbed the damn place. That and 3 years if she's been there constantly the rest of it - c'mon. please.

Nighthawk - the above point that she may want to look for another job is a good one. And I'm not saying her timing was all that wise either.

5/18/2008 11:04:50 PM

I didn't come on here to ask for your moral judgement of my decision. I asked if you had dealt with a boss that gets shitty when you call in for any reason. This was just the latest example. No shit its not a good thing to call in for any stupid fucking reason. Obviously thats shitty and you should be fired. She has dealt with sick kids and being sick over the last couple months, and now called it in one time and got called out on it. I'm pissed that he's calling her out on this when he lets others skate all the fucking time. Thats what I am upset about.

To Vix, I understand that lying, even for a good reason, is wrong. It does set a bad fucking example, and this was the first time we have done it. Obviously we aren't too damn good at it; look what the situation has turned into. Guess that'll teach us.

I know being in a part-time job you don't get sick days. And to David, great she works part-time while she's in college and we have two children. Wow, you sure got us good.

And thank you Ladywolf. She's a pretty damn good mother I think, and I know a few other wolfwebbers that can vouch to the fact that we aren't evil fucking people corrupting our kids. We were trying to do right by them, and made a decision, for better or worse. They had a damn blast by the way, and loved the balloons. I totally think it was worth the stress, and just wanted to see if you had made the decisions, or had done something similar in the past, what did you do? Just say fuck it and quit? Bullshit more? Tell 'em the truth and let them deal with it? Thats what I really wanted in all of this.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 11:14 PM. Reason : ]

5/18/2008 11:07:35 PM

Should have wrapped that shit up b.

5/18/2008 11:08:15 PM

Quote :

"Get off your highhorses all of you, unless you can promise me that 1. you never did this or 2. you never did this with a college class and 3. you will never do this."

I have never done this. At my last job I took 2 days when I had a high fever. In 2+ years at my current job I haven't taken one and I don't intend to if possible. If I want to go on hot air balloon rides I'll take a damn vaca day, and yes, I even did this when I was contracting and didn't get paid if I didn't go in to work.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 11:10 PM. Reason : ]

5/18/2008 11:09:59 PM

Quote :

"Get off your highhorses all of you, unless you can promise me that 1. you never did this or 2. you never did this with a college class and 3. you will never do this"

I've never done this, despite working part-time as a full-time student.

5/18/2008 11:16:09 PM

Quote :

"I totally think it was worth the stress, and just wanted to see if you had made the decisions, or had done something similar in the past, what did you do? Just say fuck it and quit? Bullshit more? Tell 'em the truth and let them deal with it? Thats what I really wanted in all of this."

I'm not condemning the fact that she took a day for a family function. That's important and you made it a priority. However, I would have presented it exactly as it was, not called in about some bogus car trouble. If they had a huge problem with you calling in advance about taking a family day, then I would be more sympathetic to your cause. I can't speak from personal experience on the issue, but I would not continue to lie about it. However, you've put yourselves in a bind by lying from the start.

5/18/2008 11:39:29 PM

Quote :

"I have never done this. At my last job I took 2 days when I had a high fever. In 2+ years at my current job I haven't taken one and I don't intend to if possible. If I want to go on hot air balloon rides I'll take a damn vaca day, and yes, I even did this when I was contracting and didn't get paid if I didn't go in to work. "

well she doesn't have vaca days, so its not really a valid comparison. salaried employees obviously have a little more leeway in situations like these (just dont feel like going in)

i really don't think "manning up and admitting you got caught" is the thing to do here. you guys have already made the decision...and it sounds like you had to tell a white lie to justify the day off cause I'm thinking the "wanna go to a concert etc" excuse would have gotten her off of work. not to mention that if you come with the truth at this point i doubt she'll be working there much longer anyway...and that time there will probably suck for her since they caught her in a lie. have her say that you fixed the car yourself, and leave it at that. if he wants to fire her, sounds like she might already have another job waiting for her...and a better job at that from the sound of it.

5/18/2008 11:39:41 PM

Like I said, I even took days off when I was a contractor and didn't get paid for them.

5/18/2008 11:41:12 PM

Quote :

"Get off your highhorses all of you, unless you can promise me that 1. you never did this or 2. you never did this with a college class and 3. you will never do this."

I've never done this either. Anytime I've needed a day, I've called in or gone in and said hey I need a day or two off for: "studying, recuperation, sickness, whatever". There has only been a single time that I was told no, and I told them I would turn in my resignation, in response to which, they gave me the day.

Honesty and Integrity are far more valuable than a damn hot air balloon ride.

5/18/2008 11:44:49 PM

^^well yeah, she wouldnt get paid for this either. the point is it doesn't sound like she can just take days like you did when you were a contractor. she obviously felt the need to make up a story to justify the day off...otherwise she wouldn't have "got" it.

^ again it doesn't sound like the people she works for offer her the freedom to ask for days off


i definitely wouldn't do what she did, but i understand why they came to that decision.

5/18/2008 11:46:14 PM

Maybe I could see it from her point of view if she wasn't only working 2 days a week at a job where her absence would result in other people having to do more work.

5/18/2008 11:48:44 PM

but theoretically the people left there will make more money for their extra work..so its not a total loss there

5/18/2008 11:50:17 PM

^^^Then she needs to move on to a new job. It's not like it's hard to work in shitty food service. And giving the choice of a day off or resignation lets someone know you actually need it, and if the company is worth working for, after years of good service, they will let you have it.

You can rationalize it all you want. A lie is a lie, and she got caught in it. End of story.

[Edited on May 18, 2008 at 11:50 PM. Reason : .]

5/18/2008 11:50:20 PM

^^ Haha. I doubt her coworkers see it that way.

5/18/2008 11:51:31 PM

Quote :

"but theoretically the people left there will make more money for their extra work..so its not a total loss there "

this isn't always true. if its a busy night or something then you get screwed over because you're doing extra work and you might be stretched too thin and do shittier work than you normally would and LOSE money. that might be a rare case but i remember when i worked at a bar a girl i worked with decided not to show up on st. patrick's day. there was no one to cover. and everyone got screwed because the place was slammed.

5/18/2008 11:57:48 PM

yeah, if the place is totally slammed i could see that happening. but again thats assuming they can't get someone to cover that shift...which is probably a good possibility

honestly i don't care about the other people waiting tables at some random restaurant. tww dude asked for advice, so i gave it. i try not to be all high and mighty and pass judgments on people for situations like this. sure if someone was drunk driving and killed some people, i might have some negative stuff to say. but this? not so much.

5/19/2008 12:01:23 AM

Everyone need to take mental health days, but you've taken off a couple of times in a month and then decide you need to relax? I would call you out and fire you too.

5/19/2008 12:12:06 AM

yeah it is pretty bad timing

5/19/2008 12:16:15 AM

you/she were dishonest about calling out and now you are complaining? really? lol.

5/19/2008 12:33:53 AM

have her tell them that you fixed it

[Edited on May 19, 2008 at 12:36 AM. Reason : if he still wants to be an asshole, just go into advance auto, buy somthing and return it ]

5/19/2008 12:35:16 AM

^But first build a time machine so that the date on the receipt will correlate with the day she called out instead of being several days later.

5/19/2008 12:39:40 AM

go to the auto parts store, buy something reasonably cheap like a spark plug. you replaced it yourself. if they want to investigate further, maybe she should find another job because i for one would not want to work for someone who wanted to have a detailed log of my sick day.

5/19/2008 12:50:55 AM

What I do hate, is when employees (and my current ones have never done this to my knowledge) think that since they have x number of sick days, they can take x number of days off before the end of the calendar year (sick days dont roll over)

[Edited on May 19, 2008 at 1:13 AM. Reason : sdaf]

5/19/2008 1:13:18 AM