Obligatory I'm on my phone so formatting may be a little messy.
STORYTIME!
The day before yesterday, I was at work and ended up getting physically sick on the clock.
No, nothing was wrong with me. Not sick, just tired, a bit overheated and dehydrated.
I was sent home early and the manager on duty (MOD) let the General Manager (GM) know that I'd gone home because I was sick.
About an hour after I get home I get a text from the MOD telling me that I cannot come back to work without a Doctor's Note. That I would not be allowed to work unless the MOD had a copy of a Doctor's Note or something to prove that I'd been looked at and checked out.
I let the manager know that this would be difficult and I'd have to wait until my paycheck came in to do so, and offered to take an At-Home COVID test since that seemed to be the main concern. I was told that it had to be a doctor's note, or something saying I'd gotten looked at and okay'ed.
So, I'm just seeing it as I have a couple days off now until I can go to the clinic and get okay'ed.
That is until about an hour after my scheduled clock in time yesterday.
Yesterday afternoon I get several calls and texts from the Shift Lead (SL) and the GM, all asking me why I'm not at work.
I told them I was told not to come back without a doctor's note, and then sent a picture of the text messages the MOD had sent me the night before. The GM then said that the MOD had misunderstood, and that if I were to get sick again while at work I'd have to go get a doctor's note.
I was an hour and a half late and clocked in. It's a small, 'tight-knit' team. Less than 10 people including myself. So the GM is pissed at me, and is being a bit petty about it. (She did not talk to me the whole shift and just kind of pretended I didn't exist.)
The SL is like a daughter to the GM, so she sees this as an opportunity I suppose.
When someone finally says something and is actually like friendly to me, I talk a bit back and mention that I thought I was in a lot of trouble, like getting fired trouble.
The SL in a quippy little voice with a side look at me, goes “You still could get fired tonight.”
I was taken completely aback by her comment, and actually thought it was a bit uncalled for. I was already freaking out about losing my job because the managers don't communicate, why was she throwing fuel on that fire?
I mentioned that the comment was uncalled for, and when she tried to “explain why it wasn't”, here were the points she used (and explained to me like I was a toddler even though I've been in Customer Service/Fast Food jobs for almost 10 years now):
- I should've called, because the GM forgot I was supposed to come in and the SL didn't know at all.
–I have a communication problem because even though the MOD didn't tell the GM what had been said to me, I still didn't call to double check.
-that the company has “something called a No Call No Show policy and if it were anyone else you probably would've been fired. I mean, we wouldn't have heard from you if I hadn't called!” (Yes, she said it just as condescendingly as it sounds.)
Then her and another employee went on to say that they just like to keep things honest and that that's why the comment wasn't uncalled for.
I am just having a hard time understanding how I get fired because the managers are the ones who didn't communicate.
With a team of less than 10 people, how do you forget if someone's supposed to come in?
If someone's sick, all the managers should know the proper protocol and be on the same page about it. Cause this feels like some BS to me.
TL;DR: Manager did not tell the General Manager that I was told not to come back without a doctor's note – and then somehow I'm the one in the wrong.