I am having to request little bits of time away from work at least once a week in order to get in for my monitoring appointments, blood work, etc. Should I tell my boss what is going on or just let him think I am dying of some crazy disease? I have to tell him it is "medical" or I have to use my annual leave and I don't want to do that. URGH! What have you done?
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
7 Comments:
I haven't said anything about specifics.
One lie I did tell was that I was enrolled in a clinical trial and that I was needed for medical studies every so often. I thought it was a good excuse.
Telling them might be the better way to go, but I'm with Suz in that it would depend on the manager.
I never told my employer when I was going through ART procedures. I said I had another DR appointment. If they want to know they'll ask.
I just keep saying doctor's apt. When I had my lap, I was vague -"having surgery" until asked. Then I just said it's a laparoscopy and figured boss-man would have no clue what that meant. When someone did press further I'd say it was to "check for symptoms of endometriosis". To paraphrase Mamet, though: "Always tell the truth. It's the easiest thing to remember."
I told my uber-boss that I had some "medical issues" I needed to address, and that I would be out often for doctor's appointments. I told her that it was not life-threatening, and she's never asked me for any details. You really shouldn't have to use your annual leave for this, and it's quite frankly none of their business what exactly you're doing--I say tell them something vague, and if they ask what, say "I'm sorry, but I'd rather not discuss it, but if you need a note from a doctor verifying that these are legitimate absences, I'll be happy to get one for you." Good luck!
I agree with everyone -- if you have the type of relationship with your boss where you can be more candid, then the truth IS always easier to remember. If you're asking the question I'm guessing you would have done that if it was easy. So, my best assvice would be to let your boss know that this will continue for a while and you will do your best to minimize the time away.
(sorry, deleted to edit)
I lied. I said I was having ongoing dental work. lol. But, that's also a small part of why I decided I had to take a break last fall. I was gone too much and it was starting to cause issues in my department.
That said, at the time, my direct supervisor was new at the time and I really didn't want to discuss this with her. Approaching it now, as I start up again with treatment, I will probably have a closed-door meeting with her and tell her that I have a chronic health issue that isn't serious, but will require me being out a few times in the near future. I still won't go into specifics, but I will give her a heads up on how I'll handle my work despite my absences.
I have to use annual leave for all of it too - we can't use sick leave for anything other than actual illness. Dr appts don't count.
It really depends on your relationship with your boss. My bosses knew everything. We have a really good relationship both inside and outside of work. They were incredibly supportive.
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