Want to destroy the relationship you have worked so hard to build with an employee? A supervisor should never say 4 things to an employee when the employee calls in sick!
Not all employees slack off from their duties. Most employees know they must be at work the majority of the time. Believe it or not, most of your employees really enjoy their work, want to be a success and desire to make their supervisor happy with their performance. In addition, some employees really do take pride in their job and performance. They try to be a success for themselves and for the company.
However, there are days when an employee just cannot make it to work. They have come down with a bug, a headache makes them totally useless to themselves and you or they have an illness that can be passed on to other employees.
An employee who really does not abuse their sick leave, rarely calls in and when they do call in inform you of a need to be off should never hear demeaning, negative or offensive statements from their supervisor.
Never Tell Your Employee You Are ILL Also
The one thing that an employee does not need to hear when calling in sick is “I am also sick, but I am here.” Your desire to pull yourself up from your bed, take an aspirin or two and make your way into the office is commendable. However, you have no idea how ill your employee is. Nor do you know what the employee is experiencing. If you have decided to report to work ill, that is wonderful, but never should you compare your ability to get to the job with your employee. First, if that employee makes it in and then becomes sicker than ever, you could be responsible. The world is sue happy, never place yourself in a position where you could be liable for an employee’s illness becoming worse to even life threatening.
Never Tell Your Employee A Drug You Tried For The same Thing
How do you know what your employee has? Are you a physician? If so, why are you not working in a medical practice? Diagnosing or attempting to diagnose and then prescribe a medication for an employee is illegal in addition to just down right crazy. It’s okay to advise your employee to seek medical assistance. Short of that, tell them to take care of themselves and state that you hope to see them the next workday if they feel better.
Never Tell Your Employee What You Feel The Illness May Be
Once again, unless you have a medical degree, do not diagnose your employee’s illness. You are not their physician. Nor do you want to be a physician. If so, you would be working in a different position: a doctor’s office or hospital. Employees should feel free to state that they are ill, they will not be in and when they might be reporting to work.
Never Imply Anger or Disbelief When Your Employee Calls In Sick
Amazingly, some supervisor’s feel it okay to degrade an employee when they call in. their response to the call can be felt through the words used. Some supervisor actually responds as if they do not believe the employee is ill when receiving a call. If you feel the employee is abusing their sick leave, document the number of calls and try to establish a pattern of abuse. Do not take the call or calls personally. The best action is to discipline the employee if abuse if found and can be confirmed.
Supervising people is a skill that can be extremely valuable to an employer if the position is handled with professionalism and with concern for the employee and company. A supervisor who knows how to build a relationship with the employees can make or break a manager, business or corporation.
