My Co-Worker Is Out Sick AGAIN!(Vent)

[Wish Upon A Star]

I work in a H.S. and in my office its just me and another secretary.

This girl is ALWAYS out sick. She is totally abusing the sick-time system and it ticks me off.

Yes, it's quiet without her and I can do what I need to do without her being nosey and butting in, but this is just ridiculous!

Last time I took a sick day was when I had my wisdom teeth removed (May 26th). Then I had vacation June 20 - 27.

She has been out 6 sick days since July 1st. That's only sick days though, she's been out 3 other days this month on vacation.

I know I shouldn't let it bother me and I'll probably be slammed for it, but it totally is a huge pet peeve with me.

Thanks for letting me vent . . . .

 

[DoeWDW]

I feel for you! In a small office, it's very difficult to cover the work when one of your co-workers is out!

I know I've been missing more work than I'd like to admit lately. I've been going through a serious bout of depression which many of my co-workers don't know about.

Is she just abusing sick leave or is there something wrong that she's just not ready to talk about?

Hope all gets back to normal soon!

 

[Miss Jasmine]

It's tough around here when people are out whether it is sick time or vacation time. We are understaffed as it is. So I can understand your frustration.

However, I have a chronic condition that no one at work knows about other than my boss. There are times it doesn't bother me at all, and then there are other times when it is almost a daily thing. I usually try to just work through it but I have taken my share of sick time (luckily this has not been recently).

Hang in there, I hope it gets better soon!!!

 

[PamOKW]

Do you have unlimited sick time? Don't be accusatory but make sure you're boss also knows she's out. It may be legitimate and your boss may already be aware. However, is she usually "sick" on Friday and/or Monday? She could be making long weekends for herself or she may have a drug or alcohol problem.

 

[cabmom]

I can sympathize with you! We have a summer student here who is taking almost every Monday off and we only work 4 days a week. I'm glad to be going on holidays after this week!

 

[Wish Upon A Star]

Pam -

You hit it right on the head . . .we've been wondering if alcohol abuse was the problem.

Mondays & Fridays . . .yup all the time . . .

The office manager is aware of her calling out all the time, but really nothing gets said or done . . .

We accumulate 18 sick days per year and we have 13 paid holidays and then our vacation time. She uses at least (if not more) 18 sick days per year. She then goes non-comp. She uses up her entire time accumulated then when she calls out, she doesn't get paid at all. . . Totally ridiculous.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Well if the office manager (and this is her boss, right?) lets her get away with it, then it's not just the employee's fault. It's a shame if it is infact due to some sort of chemical abuse problem. Do you have an Employee Assistance Program? Maybe someone can talk to the OM and say they are concerned about this employee. Usually a supervisor can make a recommendation for an employee to be sent to EAP.

 

[Itsanalias]

Speaking from experience, I can honestly say that when there's only two of you manning an office, it's impossible to get all the work done when one of you is out. I went through something very similar at a law firm I worked at. My "co-worker" was sick a minimum of 3 days a week, leaving me to do it all, phones, secretarial duties, plus my job (which was a 45 + hr a week job to begin with). After about two months, I'd had enough.

Whether this woman's "sick days" were justified or not, the work still had to get done, which put a tremendous strain on me. Heaven forbid if I would have gotten sick or something, the guys would have totally been screwed.

The point isn't whether she has a legitimate problem, which would require help. The point is that it puts a lot of pressure on the one person that is there to not only show up and hold down the fort, so to speak, but to also do the job of two people. IMHO, you should press for a temp to come in and help out. I finally gave my guys an ultimatum - either you get someone in here to help me out or you're gonna get two people in here to take care of your stuff. I mean 80+ hrs a week for two months straight is a little much.

 

[JustHolly]

Any chance she's planning on leaving?
I took some of my accrued sick days when I decided not to sign my contract for next year. I almost ALWAYS took a Monday or a Friday.... no chemical abuse problem, here!

In my school district, it is customary for those leaving to use their sick time.... there were many this year, all doing the same thing.

Just a thought! Sorry its so tough in the office though!