The week before last I felt the beginning of a mental breakdown looming, and decided to contact my doctor to book me off for mental health reasons. I saw him Friday morning, and he booked me off for the Friday and the whole of the following week. My manager hates short notice leave, so I knew there would be questions and she’s also definitely not the type of person who would take “mental health” as good enough of a reason.
That weekend passes, but then on Wednesday I get a WhatsApp from HR stating that my doctor’s letter will not be accepted as valid, since no reason is given (I’m not required to mention specifics by law where I live), and therefore sick leave will not be granted. I inform them that I’m by law not required to state a reason (beyond illness), and then tell them that I expected my manager to complain to HR about my leave (my mistake in hindsight) and that they are welcome to phone my doctor. HR says that my “comment” about my manager and my “tone” is not appreciated. I just stand by my points, and say that I don’t appreciate the validity of my sick leave being called into question while I’m supposed to be resting.
Come today and I’m called into a meeting with upper management, and to keep things short – doctor’s letter is easy enough to sort out, but they want me to file grievances against my manager so that they can “properly fix the issues I have with her.” Is this a trap? It definitely feels like a trap… should I file the grievances? I’m also actively searching for other work btw.