Termination for Not Calling?

System · August 2004

Hi there,

We have an employee who has been ill. She went to the doctor on Wednesday and said that she would be out the next day (Thursday) because her illness was contagious. She called on Thursday and said that she had scheduled another doctor appointment for Friday and would call once she was done with her appointment. We didn't hear from her on Friday. Her manager was concerned so she called her at home and on her cell phone over the weekend. On Sunday night, the employee's pastor called and said that she would not be in the office on Monday (today). We have called and left messages that we need to hear from her on her home and cell phones.

My question is, if we do not hear from her directly and have requested that we hear from her, could we terminate her? It seems reasonable that we hear from her directly, unless of course she physically cannot call us??? I'm concerned but we have to think about the business also. She has been out ill quite often and causing hardship to the office. The fact that she did not call us on Friday when she said she would is cause for termination in most organizations.

Our policy states that if we do not hear from an employee in 3 days, we can terminate them. If we've left messages stating that we need to hear from her (not her pastor), will this suffice?

Thanks so much for help on this.

Rita

Don D · August 2004

I personally would not rush to terminate. Something odd is going on here for sure. It may be FMLA qualifying. Termination can't gain you much advantage right now, but it could put you behind the 8-ball, if, for example, she has a sudden medical condition that requires you to retain her. I would call the pastor back and tell him she must be in touch with you immediately. Don't mess with FMLA. The law is on her side.

Rockie · August 2004

I'd wait to hear her side of the story before terminating. Seems something bizarre might be happening here since her pastor called you.

If the employee did not have a good reason for her behavior, I'd give her a written disciplinary for not following the policy of calling in personally to let you know her status.

We have had this happen in the past in our organization where employees get others to call in for them because they don't want to have to answer supervisor's questions. When supervisor tries to get up with them, their cell phone is off or they don't answer their home phones. Our policy states employee must personally notify supervisor when they cannot come to work and they must call in every day they are absent unless they are physically unable to do so.

dynamite9551 · August 2004

if you have a policy in your handbook about employees who do not call in for x number of days before termination then i would terminate. does handbook say "employee must call" or "a family friend/member must call?". there is no excuse for picking up the telephone to give you an explanation . she has not requested FMLA leave and there's no excuse for rudeness. but trust that the minute you terminate her you WILL hear from her. if you begin to analyze this instance be prepared to do the same for every other employee who has similar situations. lastly, provided that you do fire her -- and you hear from her -- you can re-think your decision to terminate - but again - precedent.

SMace · August 2004

She has not requested FML, but I would argue that Rita has enough information to realize that it MAY be FML. It could very easily turn into absence plus treatment.

Shadowfax · August 2004

I agree with the go slow approach. I think you have heard from her, just not 'directly.' Even if your policies are very specific that you must hear form the emp/ee in person, I would not rely on that position. There could be legitimate reasons the ee cannot contact you in person. While you certainly deserve an explanation from someone, the facts strongly suggest a cautious approach. Given the facts leading up to the no call situation, there is good reason to believe you may have some qualifying event to deal with.

LeeR · August 2004

I agree with everyone else. I wouldn't rush to terminate until I have personnaly spoken to the employee.

System · August 2004

Thank you everyone for your responses. This forum is so helpful. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the support.

Thank you!
Rita

Termination for Not Calling?

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