Be Excellent To Each Other

This job description just came up for a job at my company:


I have absolutely no idea what is being said here, to the extent that I don't even know what department it is for!

This fucking cold can fuck right off, I'm into day 9 now and feeling rougher than ever.

Day 9? Boo fucking hoo. Try three weeks.

I will, thanks!

Last day of work today until the 12th of January. Tch. Nightmare.

I used up all my leave going to America so I'm in the office until the 24th, then back in 29th-31st, then back in on the 2nd.

I'm also on call the 31st and 1st!

Yeah, just the bank hols for me this year too.

I've got a day off today but have woken up cold and shaking with no voice and a head full of lurgyvirus.

Oh dear. I'd phone in sick and get my day off back.

Yeah. I don't think they'd go for that...

I'm not too worried, just hate feeling this bad. My back is killing me, my arms hurt when I move. I can't tell whether I am boiling hot or freezing cold.

Going to see if I can get some more sleep as I am exhausted.

https://www.gov.uk/taking-sick-leave



Malc

Day 13 for me. And mine's been much worse than Myp's.

It isn't going to stop me going on a hike/pub crawl tomorrow though.

Yep, legally they have no choice (though if you have a shitty employer it can be more trouble than it's worth fighting for it).
I was off ill in August when I had a week booked and got my time back without any problems.
Hope it clears up soon.

I hate it when people do that. (Wave around a gov.uk summary of rights) without considering the fuller picture.

My staff get a contracted 25 days holiday a year. However if one takes into account the times they leave early/come in late for social (non medical) reasons with permission and no requirement to rework the time, allowed and encouraged to take long lunches, and other things where I intentionally ignore the limitation placed on them by the staff handbook, they all get, and know they get, a lot more than this.

If any of them bounded into my office saying that they had a cold yesterday and so want the days holiday that they took back, waving a screenprint of their employment rights, they would get the day holiday back with no questions, and also immediately revert to 9-5 with an hour for lunch and a requirement to make up any hours from arriving early/leaving late, without exception, for the rest of their careers in this office. This has happened before.

Well yes, there should be a certain amount of give and take involved. I'm not sure Mimi's employers are as flexible as you seem to be.

Check out that badass Stoat on Bing today.

It all depends on the employer doesn't it? Mine is pretty flexible and I get along with my boss so if I was sick on leave... I think I'd just suck it up and keep it as holiday.

Lord knows, I do enough skivving as it is.

Yeah, my office isn't like that. But I won't be asking to put this down as a sick day anyway because it's more hassle than it's worth and all kinds of hoops and juggles

Points taken Myp. However as background, the time it happened here, the person concerned was alerted to their rights on facebook, when they had been ill for one day of a 14 day holiday in Egypt, and wanted that day back.

Yes, that's just bollocks.

My new boss is a lot less flexible than my old one and has started insisting I come in a set time (previously I used to come in any time between 7am-8am). This means I now take all my allotted breaks and no longer stay late when shit hits the fan or we are short-staffed.

Yes, it's amazing how often management seems to fail to understand that if they're not grown up about things, you get employees who just work to rule.

Quite. Of course in a different context, my wifes reaction has been to scream RIGHTS very loudly. Because they were cunts.

Well yes - if employers are being dicks, shout RIGHTS as much as possible. It's the only way they learn.

Yes, but if your employer waves the book at you every time you come in late, and doesn't encourage long lunches, etc. Then surely you are just as entitled to wave the book back at them when appropriate.

My Boss is quite flexiable, as he needs to be. I don't mind getting up at 4am to catch a flight on a Monday, but then I finish at lunch on that Friday. Kind of works out.

Yes, I think that's rather been the point being made by everyone.

Hence the caveat of


I've seen people bullied into screaming RIGHTS by friends and family in the past, and massively shooting themselves in the foot with it to attain a marginal benefit, is what I meant.

I don't doubt, however, that in Mimi's situation the rationales are different (and I absolutely understand the view of "I get none of the good stuff, but I don't want my life here made even worse for the sake of getting this day back" - unfair for Mimi as that may be).

I like being able to work from home too.

I can't sit in the office in just my pants...

The majority of people at work are very sensible - staff and managers alike.
We do occasionally get someone who takes the piss which then results in a crackdown that affects everyone.

The last time that happened was one of our field engineers that worked on call who started trying to rigidly enforce his entitlement to an 11 hour break between shifts.
He'd finish the normal working day at 5:30pm so if he was called out of hours at say 11pm and then 6am he would insist on the 11 hour "clock" being reset each time, and send an email in saying he wouldn't be at work in time, even if it was only a 5 minute phone call he'd had to deal with. Get a call at the wrong time and he would basically refuse to come in to work the next day cause he'd done ten minutes work on call.

Given that he was paid £250 per week for being on call, plus time and a half or double for any hours worked this was seen as taking the piss somewhat.

Yeah, I never do that. I go home, have something to eat and then try to get eight hours sleep and make my way in after that.

However, if I've been at work all night, I get sent home and I'm not expected back in that day.

Dr Zoidberg wins !