World Cup fever
So you want to watch the World Cup, but you are meant
to be at work when it's on: can you play away or is the risk of
permanent relegation from your job too high?
Negotiating to win
Check your contract and work policies to see if you have a
right to book the time off under flexible working, lieu time or
holiday. Your union can also tell you of any policies that might
help you. Even if you have the right, you do need to formally
book it, and there may be a problem if too many others want the
same time off. If a few do want the time off, see if you can agree
something between you and put it to management. Having a union
negotiator can really help persuade management what a good
investment it could be to find ways to let people watch the World
Cup, for example allowing people to watch it together at work on a
big screen (great team building and a lot cheaper than an ‘away
day’).
Otherwise, see if your boss will just let you make up
the time, or if any colleague would agree to cover your work and
have you do something for them, perhaps outside of your normal
hours. (You need management approval for this too.)
Just take a ‘sickie’?
It is quite difficult to prove that someone is not really sick
if they have one day off; and most sick policies provide for the
employee to self certificate for the first day off. But if you have
a few days off which happen to be match days your employer may will
notice a pattern to your sickness which might be used as evidence
that sickness is not really the issue.
You must comply with any procedure for ringing in to notify of
sickness. If your employer is suspicious about your reason for
absence then they can take the timing of your sickie and
notification of it, and any occupational health records, in to
account in deciding on the balance of probabilities if you were
really sick, or not.
Amicus is one union resisting a move to getting employees to
ring an occupational health line where they have to speak to a
nurse who will check their symptoms and may advise them they are
not sick enough to be off work.
What if you get caught?
Taking time off work without permission can lead to dismissal
for ‘gross misconduct’. That would mean that you would not even get
any notice pay or pay for untaken holiday: just sacked on the spot
no money to come except the pay for your work up to the point of
dismissal. Also, lying to your employer about your reason for
absence might amount to gross misconduct too.
However if your company disciplinary/absence procedure does
not make this clear you can argue that it is simply a form of
misconduct which should be viewed in the light of your work record
and whether you have any other disciplinary sanctions in force at
the time. But if you are already on a final written warning, or any
warning to do with breach of trust, you would be taking a big risk
if you stay home to watch a match without permission from
work.
If you have a union representative they should be able to help
you with your arguments an interpretation of procedures, e.g.
whether a warning for an ‘offence’ other than absence counts in
determining the seriousness of an absence offence. Lateness
and absence are often treated together under the category of
‘attendance’ for disciplinary purposes. Also check if you
work has a ‘capability’ procedure which governs absences which may
be due to sickness.
It will always be a gamble if you can’t get your boss to play
on the same team in the World Cup Watching/Work game.
