AITA for Not Allowing a Sick Employee to Work from Home?

AITA for Not Allowing a Sick Employee to Work from Home? My company has a very strict policy mandating that we work from the office (WFO) with only one designated work-from-home (WFH) day allowed each week.

This policy strikes me as odd, especially considering that we are an advertising agency specializing in social media marketing a type of work that can be effectively done remotely. Nevertheless, the rule stands: if we want to work from home on any other day, we have to use a vacation day.

One day, I wasn’t feeling well and felt it would be best to work from home to avoid spreading illness to my colleagues. I requested permission to WFH, even though it was a designated WFO day. I assured my manager that I could complete all my tasks just as efficiently from home.

Despite my assurances and the nature of my work, my request was denied. Adhering to company policy, I was required to take a leave day instead of working from home, so I took the day off to rest and recover.

As the day progressed, I focused on resting and recuperating, confident that my team could handle the tasks at hand. However, later in the day, I received a message from my manager. They were urgently asking me to complete some work that had become pressing. I was surprised, given that I had officially taken a leave day.

I politely responded to my manager, reminding them of the company’s policy. I explained that, per the rules, my request to work from home had been denied, and as a result, I had taken a leave day. Therefore, I wouldn’t be working or available to handle tasks.

The situation highlighted the rigidity of our company’s WFO policy, especially in circumstances where flexibility could be beneficial. It underscored the need for potential policy reevaluation to accommodate situations where remote work would be a practical and effective solution.

More info: Reddit

AITA for Not Allowing a Sick Employee to Work from Home?

 

My company has a strict policy requiring us to work from the office (WFO) with only one designated work-from-home (WFH) day each week. It’s strange because we’re an advertising agency focused on social media marketing, which can easily be done remotely. Regardless, if we want to work remotely on any other day, we have to use a vacation day.

One day, I wasn’t feeling well and requested to WFH, even though it was a WFO day. I assured them I could complete all my tasks from home, but my request was denied. Since company policy required me to take a leave day, I took the day off to rest.

Later, when my workload became urgent, my manager messaged me, asking me to get it done. I politely reminded them that according to company policy, since I had requested a leave day, I wouldn’t be working.

Let’s swiftly assess a handful of the top comments: AITA for Not Allowing a Sick Employee to Work from Home?

twat69 writes:

They require us to use a vacation day if we want to work remotely

That’s not what vacation means.

dreamwalk_dance write:

That sounds very similar to my company. They have a general policy of 1.5 days (1 WFH one week, 2 the next) and you absolutely need to be in the office Monday/Friday. One time I had a medical emergency come up with my dog and needed to WFH on a Monday – I was told to use a sick day. So I just didn’t work. Pretty silly policy because our company was remote for over 2 years during the pandemic.

The “requiring a vacation day to work from home” piece feels EXTREMELY illegal.

They can’t require you to both work and use PTO. How have people gone along with this? This needs a call to your state labor board or a good attorney. They gonna learn today!