Your boss will likely allow you to miss work to attend your graduation and pick up your diploma. Sometimes, you might get a job before officially graduating from college. Many bosses will be sympathetic if your partner just broke up with you, or you learned that they are divorcing you. They may be less sympathetic if you were the one deciding to do the breakup. You can say you ate something bad, such as fast food from an unhygienic restaurant.
And you may not always be able to schedule these appointments outside of work hours. Have a conversation with your employer if you need to take some time to attend to your pet’s health. Transportation issues, such as car trouble or public transit delays, can prevent employees from reaching work on time. If you find yourself unable to get to work due to a transportation problem, contact your employer immediately. Be prepared to discuss potential solutions, such as finding alternative transportation or doing your work from home.
Conclusion: Valid Excuses to Miss Work
But when you work from home and getting to the office simply means walking down the hallway to your very own home office, there are far fewer reasons to call out of work. With fewer variables involved with getting you to work, you can more easily stay caught up on your tasks and responsibilities. Repeatedly using food poisoning as an excuse to miss work can be seen as dishonest and may raise suspicions with your employer. While real food poisoning is a legitimate reason for missing work, be honest about the cause of your absence and avoid using the same excuse repeatedly. Pet emergencies, such as a missing or injured animal, can arise without warning.
- Most companies have bereavement leaves as a separate section in the leave policy.
- Prioritize pressing tasks and time-sensitive messages that piled up while you were away, but balance them with adequate breaks to maintain your energy levels.
- On top of taking time to process your grief, you may need to deal with logistical and financial arrangements such as the funeral.
- You can always find a way to get the time off you need without having to make a pointless excuse like you were busy seeking advice on how to start a cover letter.
- Prioritizing your health, especially mental health before any well-balanced individual practices work.
- What about if you’re working remotely, though—the weather shouldn’t affect your ability to work, right?
You can use your sick days to get some time off if you have a doctor’s appointment for a physical health checkup. If you find out you need more time off than you originally thought, tell them immediately. This will make it clear to reasons to call out of work your team that you take your job seriously. That means if you’re faced with a sudden and unexpected family emergency, it’s completely reasonable to call out — in these moments, we need to give our loved ones our full attention.
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More often than not, people take leaves merely because they’re lazy. Hence, remind yourself during your lazy days to save up your leaves for more important reasons to call out of work. Taking some time off to rest and recharge would help me return to my best self.
It’s crucial to remember that transparency and prompt communication with your employer are key during these times. Employers usually understand and respect the need for an employee to attend to urgent family matters, especially when managed professionally. However, remember that it’s not just about absence; it’s about managing that absence responsibly and professionally. While more and more companies are accepting the idea of a mental health day without a specific reason or emergency, this excuse is best if requested one or two days in advance. General tiredness isn’t one of the best reasons for missing work on the day of your shift, since it’ll leave your boss wondering why you didn’t plan ahead and communicate better.
Good reasons to come in late or leave early
Your boss and employer value honesty and transparency, and consistently providing valid reasons for your absences can cultivate trust in the workplace. Family emergencies can (and do) happen, ranging from having to rush your sick pooch to the vet to taking care of a suddenly incapacitated relative or dealing with a child’s injury. Typically, we aren’t able to predict reasons why we may need to miss work. Not feeling well, needing to take care of a sick child, or even an ill-timed doctor’s appointment are all valid reasons to call out of work. Just try to give your employer as much notice as possible and discuss how you can make up for the time lost. As they often require mandatory appearances or dealings that cannot be rescheduled, legal obligations are universally recognized as legitimate reasons to take a day off.
While it’s not always necessary to provide plans for covering missed work during your absence, it can be helpful and appreciated by your employer. This shows that you are responsible and considerate of the impact your absence might have on other team members or company. If you’re working from home, not all of the above excuses to miss work will be effective.
