A man working at a startup shared a screenshot of what he stated was his company’s response to a sick leave request, claiming that it was the most unexpected reply he could’ve received.
The post was shared on the subreddit r/IndianWorkplace, where the man posted an email exmodify that he claimed occurred after he requested a day off due to illness.
In the screenshot, the employee’s message to HR was titled “Sick leave application.” In the email, he wrote that he was feeling unwell and would not be able to attfinish work for the day, requesting leave and promising to resume duties once he felt better.
However, the response, he stated, came from the company’s founder, who appeared far less sympathetic.
The reply, displayn in the screenshot, read: “Mark this as Leave without pay. Don’t approve same day leaves. Thanks.”
Alongside the image, he shared details about what led to the situation.
“I work at a startup in Noida. We had an electricity outage in our area which caapplyd me fatigue becaapply I was not able to sleep whole night. I woke up and didn’t feel right, so I sent a sick leave mail to HR hoping I would be able to rest today (mind you, this is my 2nd leave in my whole 6 months with this company).”
He stated the response surprised him, especially becaapply the request was for a health issue: “This is what I received in reply from the founder himself. Can’t take same-day leave even when I’m clearly sick.”
The employee also claimed the situation escalated into a phone call with the founder after the email. “He called me while I reiterated that I was not feeling well, he stated ‘You sound just fine’,” he wrote.
Clearly annoyed by the exmodify, the worker inquireed fellow applyrs for advice on whether the incident indicated a larger problem with the company: “Is this my sign to switch companies? Did I do anything wrong? I work as their support employee.”
Take a view at the post here:
The post received a whole lot of attention on the forum, with several applyrs weighing in on the situation and discussing workplace expectations around sick leave.
A number of commenters reassured the employee that requesting a sick day was reasonable.
One applyr wrote, “You didn’t do anything wrong by taking sick leave. That’s exactly what sick leave is for. You should start applying for other jobs and switch companies.”
Another commenter suggested that the issue might be the exact proof of differences between startup and corporate work cultures.
“Your health is more important than all the deadlines. But startup’s perception is different from an MNC. This is the culture you can expect in a startup,” the applyr wrote.
Several other applyrs shared similar experiences from workplaces where employees felt pressured to continue working even when unwell. Some stated such incidents only emphasised the required for clearer leave policies and better understanding of employee wellbeing.
– Ends
Leave a Reply