Where's the line between "nosy" and "need to know"?

System · April 2003

We have an employee who called in and said he couldn't come in today. The supervisor asked why and he said, "It's personal". She asked if it was personal "business" or "personal something else". He wouldn't elaborate, just said - "it's personal". This employee has used up sick days..and vacation days and we don't have "personal" days...and he'll be docked. But aren't we due some better explanation than "personal"?

Thanks for any thoughts.

Parabeagle · April 2003

I'd let it drop and document the conversation. It seems to me that if he wanted the protections that would be afforded to him by virtue of it being a FMLA-related matter or some other theory, he would have volunteered the reason why he was not coming in. However, I know that some supervisors can be incredibly nosy (we have a few) and I have to continually caution them not to pry too hard.

I would keep track of the occurrences and treat it as you would any other disciplinary action resulting from excessive absenteeism, if it gets to that point.

pecohr · April 2003

I agree with Parabeagle and would pose the following question; what purpose does having the information serve... other than giving an answer to someones curiosity? The ee is still not there and you may get and answer that you really don't want or need to hear. Just treat it as a performance issue, if it is one, and discipline accordingly.

LindaS · April 2003

I agree with the others. At this point the supervisor does not need the specifics and if the ee were desiring any protection under any of the regulations afforded him, he would notify you. Treat this absence as you would any other and discipline as necessary, if your policy warrants it. Document the conversation so that if the ee comes back at some point in the future looking for protection, remind him of the conversation and that it was his choice to, or not to, go into detail regarding the reason(s) behind his absence.

ray a · April 2003

A slightly different approach. Since this person has already used up their alloted sick and vacation time, and they have not given you a valid reason for being off, I would give them a verbal reprimand following our progressive disciplinary process. If the problem persists with no valid reason, then continue with the disciplinary process.

Crout · April 2003

When you say "docked" are you speaking of an exempt, or a non-exempt employee?

tbehan · April 2003

Whether they were exempt or non-exempt wouldn't matter in this instance, would it- since the time taken was for personal reasons?

LFernandes · April 2003

If the employee does not want to disclose the reason for his absence to his supervisor, counsel him and then ask him to call future absences in to HR. Explain to EE that he or she can speak to HR confidentially. He or she may be having difficulties outside of work (or with their supervisor) that (s)he doesn't want others to know about. By speaking with HR directly, you may be able to help them by providing them with numbers to your EAP (if you have one) or at the very least a sympathic ear.

Lfernandes

System · April 2003

I should have stated at first...he's non-exempt.

I appreciate all the advice, and like the "counseling" idea. I think the supervisor was just a little surprised..most folks tell you more than you really want to know about their problem, and I think she felt he just wanted a day off!

Thanks again...

Crout · April 2003

I disagree with "counseling" a non-exempt employee in this situation. Your company offers time off in the form of vacation and sick time. Allowing this EE to play a semantics game and carve out some "Personal Time" sets a bad precedent. If you have asked for an explanation and the EE declined to give you one then by all means use your disciplinary process. The EE can't then come back and say that you never considered his/her particular circumstances.

LFernandes · April 2003

Crout - why would you disagree with counseling? It doesn't mean that it would be paid time off. If the employee doesn't have paid time off available to them, make it unexcused/unpaid but HR should really talk to the employee about the proper use of time. As I said before, there may be something there that needs HR's attention.

Safety Witch · April 2003

I've got a different angle, from experience, of course. We've had employees call in saying it is personal and then file a worker's comp claim later. We asked our supervisors to inquire if they are hurt and/or sick and if they were hurt on the job and then document the conversation. This has proven to protect us down the road when the ee discovers he/sh wasn't covered by sick or vacation days and decide to cash in on the w/c benefit. If it is truly personal, then I would take the HR professionals advice.

Where's the line between "nosy" and "need to know"?

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