17-Year-Old Says Boss Called Their Doctor To Find Out When They Could Come Back To Work After They Called Out
This boss should hire more employees.
Stokkete / Shutterstock / Reddit We’ve all had to call out from work once in our lifetime, whether we were genuinely ill, nursing a hangover or playing hooky.
Regardless, it was usually a quick phone call to the manager and that was the end of it.
A teenager who called out sick from her job never expected her boss to hunt down her doctor after she presented a note stating that she could not come to work.
The boss called the 17-year-old employee’s doctor to confirm return-to-work guidelines.
The anonymous Reddit user took the subreddit thread, r/antiwork to share screenshots of text messages between them and their boss after they called out sick.
After testing positive for covid, the employee sent a doctor’s note from Urgent Care proving the positive test result to their boss.
“Hi, I tested positive for covid and I am required to quarantine for 10 days,” they texted.
This would usually be enough for an employer to keep one of their workers off the schedule until they were feeling well enough to come back and were no longer contagious.
However, this person’s boss did not accept the doctor’s note.
“That’s fine, but the quarantine is now five days. I will call your doctor and confirm it but they changed it,” they replied.
When the employee informed their boss that their doctor advised them to isolate for 10 days since they could still be contagious after five days, the boss decided to call the doctor themselves and confirm with them.
“I’m on the phone with him now. I’ll let you know,” they say.
After reportedly phoning the employee’s doctor, their boss attempted to encourage them to come back to work sooner.
“Your doctor said you have two options. You can quarantine for 10 days at home or after five days if you are feeling better and not showing symptoms you can return to work wearing a mask,” they texted.
They claimed it was in alliance with the CDC guidelines. The boss then asked the employee if they received the covid vaccine, which they did according to them.
When the employee pointed out that the recommended isolation period is 10 days, their boss told them that coming into work or not was “their decision,” however, if they were vaccinated against covid and not experiencing symptoms they were allowed to work.
The employee added that Mother’s Day was quickly approaching and work would be busy so their boss needed all hands on deck.
The employee’s doctor then called their mother to complain about the boss’s rudeness over the phone regarding the situation.
Redditors were disgusted by the boss’ actions which violated the employee’s privacy.
“Your boss is a f–king psycho. No employer should have this much of a hand in your personal life, this is worse than most parents,” one user commented.
“That is hella weird for your boss to do that. Run from that place. He’s a controller,” another user wrote.
Other users pointed out that the employee’s doctor could not disclose medical information to their employer due to HIPAA.
According to HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), doctors are required to protect their patient’s privacy.
“Due to HIPAA, the doctor would legally not be able to tell her anything. That’s a great way for them to lose their license,” one user pointed out.
“If your doctor gave any information about you being tested and the results that might violate certain laws,” another user noted.
Others believed that the employee’s boss called the doctor and was told they could not have the patient’s personal information but were instead given the proper covid protocols over the phone.
According to the CDC, anyone who tests positive for covid should quarantine for at least five days and if they must leave the house, they are encouraged to wear a mask to reduce the risk of passing it on to others.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.