Thanks everybody for all the feedback. I don't know if it's a good thing or not to find out that it's not just where I work that rules are applied selectively. There are definitely some people in my office who get away with bullshit reasons for being off, the kind of reasons that if you or I offered them as explanations for an absence would result in either pay being stopped or being hit some kind of conduct code warning. Or both. I ain't going to bother taking a risk now just to do some decorating, not when the new annual leave year starts in a few weeks time anyway. With my luck, some flecks of paint would still be in my hair at my return-to-work meeting, while I told whoever about my 'illness'
Fozziebear and Postman: I smiled when you said about people being able to work out how much time off they could have off without ever getting a stage warning. Believe this or not, but I swear it's true. We had a postie who transferred to us from another office (I won't name it cos I don't want to imply that everyone who works there has a similar attitude) not long after I started, who told me he kept a
diary of his absences, and knew exactly, to the day, when it was 'safe' to have another sickie
What he used to do (he claimed) was have 4 DAYS sick in January (for example), another 4 days in May, and 4 days in September. The next year, he'd have 4 days off in February, June and October, and so on. Do you see a pattern ? In reality, it meant that in any 12-month period, counted from whatever time you choose, he only ever had 3 absences totalling 12 days, never enough to trigger even a Stage 1. One year he did come unstuck and got the flu, so he was buggered by a 4th absence, but he just kept a clean sheet for 12 months and went back on the same routine !! But here's the real piss-taking bit: We used to have pretty much open docket on weekend overtime until we got the office fully staffed, and he'd work Saturday and Sunday on docket, phone in sick on Monday, then return to work on Friday and put down for weekend docket again
He took EVR eventually but there's a few in our office who have copied the 'sickie sandwich' scam for weekend docket when they've had a long period with no sick
The thing is, if an absence comes under the heading of O/A, does the person still get paid ? The bloke who's been off at my place has been on other shifts before and has supposedly had past absences booked as O/A and is well known as one of the p!ss-takers that every office seems to have. You have to assume that he does get paid or he'd use his sick 'entitlement' wouldn't he ? If he does, what's the point in any of us buying extra annual leave, only to find you get knocked back when you try to use it anyway ? My manager is usually pretty good at giving Comp days at short notice, but there's some who just take the day off, give some wild story on their return, and get the day's leave granted after it's been taken - IF THEIR FACE FITS
err i think.
That decorating won't do itself 
