Will 3 phone calls in 3 days sick be deemed as unreasonable

[centenaryman]

hi,,,,sadly had to phone in sick Wednesday morning....I did and stated I was going sick and would keep them updated.

today im day off they rang me to see if I would be in work tomorrow Thursday to which I replied no im still ill...they asked me to ring Friday about coming in Saturday.,,i agreed to ring.

I will ring tomorrow.....so that will be 3 phone calls in 3 days....

is this unreasonable am I being to sensitive...

[k979aaa]

hi,,,,sadly had to phone in sick Wednesday morning....I did and stated I was going sick and would keep them updated.

today im day off they rang me to see if I would be in work tomorrow Thursday to which I replied no im still ill...they asked me to ring Friday about coming in Saturday.,,i agreed to ring.

I will ring tomorrow.....so that will be 3 phone calls in 3 days....

is this unreasonable am I being to sensitive...

Depends on the sickness or they could say they are phoning out of concern did you tell them a time scale and your sickness ie a broken leg 6-8 weeks tummy bug day or two!

[worktotime]

tell them to f**k off , it doesn't matter whats wrong with you all sick is genuine and they shouldn't be ringing you everyday its harassment , you are entitled to a 7 days self cert sick note , and then if you still aren't fit to work go to docs and get a docs note . don't be pressured in going back to work if you aren't 100%. contact your rep.

[worktotime]

hi,,,,sadly had to phone in sick Wednesday morning....I did and stated I was going sick and would keep them updated.

today im day off they rang me to see if I would be in work tomorrow Thursday to which I replied no im still ill...they asked me to ring Friday about coming in Saturday.,,i agreed to ring.

I will ring tomorrow.....so that will be 3 phone calls in 3 days....

is this unreasonable am I being to sensitive...

Depends on the sickness or they could say they are phoning out of concern did you tell them a time scale and your sickness ie a broken leg 6-8 weeks tummy bug day or two!

we aren't all qualified doctors or consultants so how do you know how long ? you need to be 100% in this job now or your in s**t and why risk our own health for this company , who by the way are on about stopping sick pay .

[Creditshampoo]

Say you're signing yourself off for 7 days and that you'll contact them then. Then get a doctor's note if needed

[centenaryman]

Thanks....

Wont go into specs but im ill....getting better ye...but wont be pressured thanks...
Also know there defo short staffed most part timers are in early for overtime...bigwigs looking at the budget overspend soooo think this is why the calls to attempt to get me back in and presumably others as well..

[SierraOscarBravo]

tell them to f**k off , it doesn't matter whats wrong with you all sick is genuine and they shouldn't be ringing you everyday its harassment , you are entitled to a 7 days self cert sick note , and then if you still aren't fit to work go to docs and get a docs note . don't be pressured in going back to work if you aren't 100%. contact your rep.

It is not unreasonable for an employer to maintain contact during a period of paid sick leave. The employee needs to recover after sickness and during that period of recovery it is not at all "outrageous" or "disgusting" for both employee and employer to make daily contact to ascertain both the wellbeing of the employee and the likely date of return to work. Royal Mail like any employer does need to plan its staffing duties.

At the end of the day you simply cannot have a situation whereby any given employee can phone up sick and then say 'now don't bother phoning me or asking me to phone you....but keep on paying me sick pay for the next number of days/weeks/months etc. with no questions asked".

Yet again there is this deeply embedded culture among those who have been at Royal Mail more years than they can remember that they are 'owed' or 'deserve' to be mollycuddled and are 'entitled'.

I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear.

[rubberbond]

tell them to f**k off , it doesn't matter whats wrong with you all sick is genuine and they shouldn't be ringing you everyday its harassment , you are entitled to a 7 days self cert sick note , and then if you still aren't fit to work go to docs and get a docs note . don't be pressured in going back to work if you aren't 100%. contact your rep.

It is not unreasonable for an employer to maintain contact during a period of paid sick leave. The employee needs to recover after sickness and during that period of recovery it is not at all "outrageous" or "disgusting" for both employee and employer to make daily contact to ascertain both the wellbeing of the employee and the likely date of return to work. Royal Mail like any employer does need to plan its staffing duties.

At the end of the day you simply cannot have a situation whereby any given employee can phone up sick and then say 'now don't bother phoning me or asking me to phone you....but keep on paying me sick pay for the next number of days/weeks/months etc. with no questions asked".

Yet again there is this deeply embedded culture among those who have been at Royal Mail more years than they can remember that they are 'owed' or 'deserve' to be mollycuddled and are 'entitled'.

I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear.

Just because they are paying you does not mean they need to,or have the right to ring you everyday. All that happens is that it gets people annoyed and they then entrench their position, taking more time off. Threaten them with legal action under the freedom from harassment legislation. They soon back off.
No manager I have met holds a degree in Mei divine and a further qualified as a G.P. Most illnesses are self limiting , a phone call at day 2 is not unreasonable , butthis is bordering on harassment. Perhaps you could look at this icmoany with a more critical eye and accept that it's not one of the best employers in the country. Despite what they try and tell you. We all accept the need for change, if it's handled properly and benefits everybody, from customers to employees,in Royal Mail ,it's always trying to hammer square pegs into round holes,instead of stepping back to see what the problem is,they just shout at people to use a bigger hammer.

[Bernardson]

SOB posted
"I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear."

The problem of this policy also penalises those who have few days off. Then when they are sick they will feel deep injustice of having a penalty when perhaps their overall attendance is very good.

Heavy drinking may not only be restricted to the plebs as two senior managers in my region have recently been done for Drink Driving (Friday Club after the Area Managers monthly meeting)

[SierraOscarBravo]

SOB posted
"I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear."

The problem of this policy also penalises those who have few days off. Then when they are sick they will feel deep injustice of having a penalty when perhaps their overall attendance is very good.

Heavy drinking may not only be restricted to the plebs as two senior managers in my region have recently been done for Drink Driving (Friday Club after the Area Managers monthly meeting)

I take your points on board. Maybe the removal of sick pay for the first 3 days should be voided if the employee has had no sick absence in the preceding 12 months? The policy proposal is still evolving.

[ernieshoe]

SOB posted
"I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear."

The problem of this policy also penalises those who have few days off. Then when they are sick they will feel deep injustice of having a penalty when perhaps their overall attendance is very good.

Heavy drinking may not only be restricted to the plebs as two senior managers in my region have recently been done for Drink Driving (Friday Club after the Area Managers monthly meeting)

I take your points on board. Maybe the removal of sick pay for the first 3 days should be voided if the employee has had no sick absence in the preceding 12 months? The policy proposal is still evolving.

The problem with sick pay issue is that Royal Mail staff work in close proximity to each other.
If sick pay is stopped then people may feel forced into coming into work and spreading germs.
Germs can be spread onto parcels.
Delivery staff come into contact with people at home sick answering the door.
It is very easy to pick up colds, flu, sick bugs on delivery.
Royal Mail really need to hit the staff hard who openly flaunt the system not.
I am totally against not paying sick for the first 3 days.
It will affect the majority of hard working honest people !
We needed to be hitting the minority who openly admit to playing the stages system.

[SierraOscarBravo]

SOB posted
"I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear."

The problem of this policy also penalises those who have few days off. Then when they are sick they will feel deep injustice of having a penalty when perhaps their overall attendance is very good.

Heavy drinking may not only be restricted to the plebs as two senior managers in my region have recently been done for Drink Driving (Friday Club after the Area Managers monthly meeting)

I take your points on board. Maybe the removal of sick pay for the first 3 days should be voided if the employee has had no sick absence in the preceding 12 months? The policy proposal is still evolving.

The problem with sick pay issue is that Royal Mail staff work in close proximity to each other.
If sick pay is stopped then people may feel forced into coming into work and spreading germs.
Germs can be spread onto parcels.
Delivery staff come into contact with people at home sick answering the door.
It is very easy to pick up colds, flu, sick bugs on delivery.
Royal Mail really need to hit the staff hard who openly flaunt the system not.
I am totally against not paying sick for the first 3 days.
It will affect the majority of hard working honest people !
We needed to be hitting the minority who openly admit to playing the stages system.

Good, valid points and I do agree with you about dealing with the persistent minority who are milking the current system for all its worth.

How do you feel about employees with no sick abscence in the preceding 12 months getting paid sick leave for the first 3 days? This would ensure that anyone with an impeccable attendance record is not penalised.

We need to have a carrot and stick approach and it is high time those employees with 100% attendance were recognised. I received a generic letter some time ago congratulating me on having no sick absences in the last 6 years. A bit insulting really. Surely some kind of financial bonus, gift vouchers or something along those lines would be a better way to encourage and reward high attendance.

[mickeymacca]

Yeh I got one of those SOB, I felt like I was being mocked!

[Lounge Lizard]

Thanks....

Wont go into specs but im ill....getting better ye...but wont be pressured thanks...
Also know there defo short staffed most part timers are in early for overtime...bigwigs looking at the budget overspend soooo think this is why the calls to attempt to get me back in and presumably others as well..

C,
If you are too unwell to attend work than you must be off and budget overspends are an irrelevance.

[Lounge Lizard]

SOB posted
"I have sympathy for genuine sick abscence, but there are too many throughout Royal Mail who will too readily go sick because they can't be bothered to get out of bed after a long night of heavy drinking or they just can't be bothered full stop. For these people stopping sick pay for the first 3 days would soon shift their backsides into gear."

The problem of this policy also penalises those who have few days off. Then when they are sick they will feel deep injustice of having a penalty when perhaps their overall attendance is very good.

Heavy drinking may not only be restricted to the plebs as two senior managers in my region have recently been done for Drink Driving (Friday Club after the Area Managers monthly meeting)

I take your points on board. Maybe the removal of sick pay for the first 3 days should be voided if the employee has had no sick absence in the preceding 12 months? The policy proposal is still evolving.

The problem with sick pay issue is that Royal Mail staff work in close proximity to each other.
If sick pay is stopped then people may feel forced into coming into work and spreading germs.
Germs can be spread onto parcels.
Delivery staff come into contact with people at home sick answering the door.
It is very easy to pick up colds, flu, sick bugs on delivery.
Royal Mail really need to hit the staff hard who openly flaunt the system not.
I am totally against not paying sick for the first 3 days.
It will affect the majority of hard working honest people !
We needed to be hitting the minority who openly admit to playing the stages system.

Good, valid points and I do agree with you about dealing with the who are milking the current system for alpersistent minority l its worth.


How do you feel about employees with no sick abscence in the preceding 12 months getting paid sick leave for the first 3 days? This would ensure that anyone with an impeccable attendance record is not penalised.

We need to have a carrot and stick approach and it is high time those employees with 100% attendance were recognised. I received a generic letter some time ago congratulating me on having no sick absences in the last 6 years. A bit insulting really. Surely some kind of financial bonus, gift vouchers or something along those lines would be a better way to encourage and reward high attendance.

SOB,
I had 28 years in a previous job without a day off sick.
That meant that I was fortunate enough to enjoy good health, not that I was one of "the majority of hard working honest people".
Had I been unwell quite often and needed regular sick absences that would NOT have meant that I was part of "the persistent minority who are milking the current system for all its worth".
If you genuinely know of "a persistent minority who are milking the current system for all its worth" then challenge them directly rather than whingeing about them sat comfortably at home.