How Should I Handle an Employee's Unapproved Medical Leave Request? Seeking Advice!

Hi Everyone! I am working in a small company where I am taking care of recruitment and employee records. One of the employees who works in our company took leave for 8 days last month, and now he is asking me to calculate those days as medical leave. He didn't inform me before taking the leave. When I called him, he said he was sick, but even then, he didn't request medical leave. He went to his hometown and returned after 7 days. How should I handle this situation? He is an important person in the company, and if he is absent, all the technical work will be put on hold, and we can't even run the business.

I'm new to this field. Please help me with this situation. If we should grant him medical leave, what particulars do we need from the employee?

Thanks in advance,
Divya

The basic discipline can never be compromised, regardless of the skills a person possesses. Kindly ask him gently to provide proof for medical treatment, as the number of days absent is increasing. Please refer to your company's leave policy. Be gentle yet firm in your approach. Seek guidance from your reporting boss.

Thank you.

One cannot simply choose leaves according to their preference. You need to request and verify the medical certificates from him. Also, inform the manager that this is to maintain decorum in the business. One person cannot oversee all the organizational policies.

Regards,
Ashutosh Thakre

As an HR professional, it is important to be very strict when enforcing HR policies. It is crucial to ensure that employees understand and comply with the policies in place. In this case, please communicate with the employee, counsel them on the policies, and request that they provide a medical certificate for their leave. Grant them leave this time, but make it clear that any future violations will not be tolerated.

Regards,
Harish Kumar

If an employee takes more than 3 days of leave, the days should be considered as Medical leave. The employee must submit a medical certificate. Moreover, if the employee does not inform about the leave in advance, you should not compromise on that. Also, please check your company's policy regarding this matter.

Thank you.

While all are right in suggesting to Divya that things need to be handled strictly, I think it's ALSO important to remember to be REALISTIC. Divya is working in a small company and she also mentions that this employee is critical.

Let's assume she goes by the advice/suggestion to get tough with this employee and the more likely result COULD be that the employee quits OR begins to resist action—without debating WHETHER this will happen or not, WHAT IF it happens—basically the Worst-Case-Scenario? Wouldn't BOTH Divya [as HR] and her company get hit?

Steps to Handle the Situation

Step 1: Accept the employee's request [I hope it was a request—matters would be different IF it was more of a threat or abrasive act by the employee, which Divya needs to clarify] to convert the absence to Medical Leave—as a ONE-time action by the company.

Step 2: Inform him clearly that this won't and can't be accepted IF repeated again.

Step 3: While it's easy to say this, I know it's tough to do this. As far as possible, never allow any single employee to become such a critical resource that the company would fall IF he/she leaves or acts funny. To preempt any such situation in the future, I would suggest that some action is taken to develop a second line as a backup, just in case. Such a step not only acts as a backup but also gives off an unsaid message that no one is indispensable.

Regards,
TS

You have a very limited role in the decision. It is essentially a decision of the company as to how much they would compromise discipline for business. Companies, whether small or big in yesteryears, meant business with discipline. However, today there is a dilution of ethics for business, which is sad and detrimental in the long run. Yet, go by what your employer says, but his decision should make you introspect to decide, "Am I to work for such people?"

Regards,
Kannan

When it comes to HR discipline, you should be strict about the rules of employment and not compromise on discipline. If an employee requests to convert their leave into sick leave, ask them to provide a medical certificate from a doctor if their absence exceeds three days. If they submit a valid medical certificate and fitness certificate, you can consider accepting this with a warning to the employee concerned. If the employee has already applied for leave, gone on leave, and is now requesting a conversion to sick leave, and if they have not been absent without authorization, it is advisable to consider this option in the interest of both parties.

Regards,
Adoni Suguresh
Sr. Executive (Pers, Admin & Ind. Rels) Rtd
Labour Laws Consultant

Importance of Key Personnel in Organizations

Key personnel should know that the organization depends on their skills and tends to compromise with disciplinary issues. The owner tends to tolerate it because he apparently has no choice. Developing a strong second line in every skill set is the answer to this problem.