Background: working front desk at a medium sized pet boarding/daycare facility. This happened around middle 2020 when Covid was still widespread and an unknown quantity. CDC guidelines said to stay home if you had ANY symptom.
There were many reasons why I was getting sick of working here. I was hired on at a higher hourly rate then normal and told not to talk about it with coworkers. When coworkers found out my hourly and requested higher pay (mind you they have 2+ years experience over me) they were denied and I was reprimanded.
We also made hundreds of dollars a month in cash tips. We the employees never saw a single cent. (I know now that this is illegal). What really ended it for me was when I became very ill. I called out twice and the third day limped into my shift because the manager told me under no uncertain terms I could not call out. By midday I was miserable; sweating and feverish while vomiting off and on. I told the manager that I needed to go home.
He said that to go home early I needed a Dr. Note. Yep you heard that right. To leave early THAT DAY I needed to provide him a Drs. Note (before I could leave). I sucked it up and finished my shift.
The next day I had a telehealth appt and explained the work situation to my doctor. She gave me a note saying that I was to stay home from work until 3 day after symptoms were gone. I called my manager, gave him my two weeks and the dr note with the doctors instructions. He was PISSED but couldn’t do anything, as they were so short staffed that they needed to keep me.
My symptoms abated 5 days later and per doctors orders I waited another 3 days before returning to work. I finished up the next 5 days and left. I was paid full sick time for the 8 missed days. If my manager hadn’t been so unreasonable I could have come back MUCH sooner and saved the company having to pay 8 unworked sick days. But no. I took my money and left with a huge smile on my face. First time I ever stuck up for myself like this.
The icing on the cake was when the manager had the audacity to ask me “why I was leaving our little family”