Fitness Instructor Fired Via Snarky Group Text For Calling In Sick Despite Showing Proof Of A Fever
Her boss said he couldn't cover for her because he had a headache.
Dragana Gordic / Shutterstock It’s impossible to avoid getting sick. And, when you are sick, you don’t want to go to work. Not only do you not feel up to it, but you also want to keep others healthy and prevent them from catching what you have.
One employee tried to do everything right by calling in sick when she had a high fever, but she ended up being fired for it.
A fitness instructor was fired in a group text even though she had proof she was sick.
TikTok user Allie Saylor usually posts fun content that her friends and family would likely be interested in seeing. However, one of her more recent videos reached far beyond that, gaining one million views.
In the video, Saylor explained how she was fired from her job as a fitness instructor.
“Okay, so, yesterday, I had to call out of my fitness job where I teach fitness classes because I had a fever, um, to the point where it got to 103, and my boyfriend had to leave work and take me to urgent care,” she said.
Saylor emphasized the fact that she was really sick. She recounted, “It was really bad. I, like, literally couldn’t move, so … “
“Um, yeah, I got fired for that,” Saylor continued, giving a sarcastic thumbs-up sign.
Saylor seemed to take getting fired in stride, but she was upset about the way it happened.
Photo: Mikhail Nilov / Pexels
“But the way that I got fired … I sent a picture of the thermometer reading 101 and asked if anyone could cover, and then the owner just said, “Goodbye, Allie,” and kicked me out of the Group Me,” she said. “So, yeah. Shred 415 in Alpharetta, you’re awesome.”
Saylor showed a screenshot of the Group Me exchange, in which she asked if anyone could cover her fitness class since she was sick, with a photo of her thermometer included. At first, the owner said he couldn’t help out because he had a headache. Then, a while later, he told her goodbye.
Saylor was overwhelmingly advised by fellow TikTok users to take legal action.
Many people who commented on Saylor’s video recommended she file a lawsuit against the business she worked for.
“You can sue for wrongful termination,” one person said.
“That’s illegal, babe,” said another.
Saylor clarified in a follow-up video that she had no intention of suing. She just wanted to get the word out about what she had experienced.
“I’m not trying to sue,” she insisted. “I’m not trying to get my bag. I can’t file for unemployment; I have another job. I was just exposing the practices of that specific location.”
Could Saylor take legal action if she wanted to?
There is no clear-cut answer to whether Saylor could actually sue her former employer for firing her when she called in sick.
There is really no clear response to whether or not you can be fired for being sick in the first place.
According to U.S. News and World Report, “Workers who belong to a union may have some added protections, but for most people, the answer depends on your state laws.”
Photo: Polina Tankilevitch / Pexels
Career expert Amanda Augustine told the outlet, “If you’re working in a state with at-will employees, they can fire you for anything that’s not illegal.
While many believed that Saylor had a strong case, that isn’t accurate. Instead, her employer may have had every legal right to fire her.
Whether or not it was ethically right is another matter.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.