Manager's 7-day notice policy for sick leave baffles internet. Viral post

Commenters on Reddit were quick to suggest ways to cope with the absurd demand.

An Indian manager's requirement for employees to apply for sick leave seven days in advance has left people on social media baffled. The unusual policy came to light when an employee shared a screenshot of a WhatsApp conversation with his boss on the "antiwork" Reddit forum.

The employee informed his manager, "My health is not well, so I won’t be coming to the office." The manager responded by asking if the employee was planning to take sick leave. Upon confirming, the manager stated, "To take sick leave or casual leave you need to inform at least 7 days prior."

How to know if I am going to be sick in next 7 days?(NOC)
byu/faj-707 inantiwork

This prompted the employee to question, "How to know if I am going to be sick in next 7 days?" The post quickly gained traction, sparking widespread bemusement and criticism.

Commenters on Reddit were quick to suggest ways to cope with the absurd demand. One user proposed, "Send an email every day: 'This is to inform you that I may get sick seven days from now and may thus need to use sick time.' See how long it takes." Another agreed, saying, "Malicious compliance time... every Monday morning submit a preemptive sick leave notice, then cancel it the following Monday when you submit a new one."

Some users shared their own experiences with unreasonable company policies. One recalled, "I used to work in a supermarket. One day I had an evening shift. At some point in the early afternoon, I fell down a flight of stairs and had a bruised knee and a minor concussion. I called in sick and got told I needed to come in anyway or be written up because calling in sick must happen before 8 am. Yeah, I’ll schedule falling down the stairs next time."

A user recalled, "My grandpa died and work said 'Let us know if there's anything we can do for you.' In tears, I asked 'Can I go home?' and was told 'Well, we don't have enough coverage for you right now'".

"This was a help desk job, on a weekend. We had 4 people staffed and we averaged 5 calls per Saturday/Sunday. I literally got zero calls the rest of the day and zero calls on Sunday."