As an employee, attendance in the workforce is key. Even the best employee though, sometimes, needs to take time off work. Maybe you’re going through a break-up, had a negative experience with a customer the day prior, or maybe your mental health is not doing so well. Excuses for missing work come in all shapes and sizes – some are excellent reasons, some not-so-much, and some outright terrible.
The best excuses for missing work are those that have some honesty in them and which are believable. Here’s a quick list of good excuses for missing work.
1. You’re sick
If you’re not calling in sick very often or if you have a near-perfect attendance record, there’s nothing wrong with taking a day off and using the ‘I’m sick’ card. You do want to know your employer’s policy though as to if you need to produce a doctor’s note as this can be problematic. Being sick does not have to come with gruesome details. You can simply say your stomach is upset, or perhaps you have a high fever.
2. House emergency
A good excuse for missing work is that there’s something wrong with your house. This can be as simple as a flooded basement, a broken boiler, or something that requires a contractor having to make an emergency house-call. If something is broken inside the home that needs addressing immediately, your boss should understand you have to stay home to address it. A house emergency is something you can claim once and expect understanding on the other end.
3. Children are sick
If there’s something wrong with your child and they need to stay home from school, there’s nothing anyone can do to fault you for missing work. These things happen and if you have children, it’s expected that there may be a family emergency now and again. If your child unexpectedly has to stay home, so do you and your boss should be fair in giving you that time, as long as it’s not abused in any way.
4. Family emergency
If something has happened with one of your parents, or if your spouse has a serious health problem, and/or if there’s someone close to you who is at the hospital, this is a good excuse for missing work. That said, if you’re lying and you pull from this too often, people are going to begin to take notice. An excuse has got to be believable and have some honesty to it. Also, what happens if you do need to take time off for a family emergency – you could be trapped.
5. Delivery
If you have something big coming to your house – think fridge, furniture, or something valuable you don’t want left at your front door – this can be an excellent excuse for missing work. It might not get you the full day though so beware. You may be permitted to leave work early, take an hour or two off, take an extra lunch or something similar. Regardless, if you don’t have anyone else at home to pick up a delivery for you, this might be your ticket.
6. Someone passed away
If someone has died, that’s a good reason to miss work however it’s not smart to use as a made-up excuse. Believe us when we say this is something most people regret as it’s easy to get mixed up between who you’ve told your employer has passed and furthermore, if it comes across as random to your supervisor, it’s an immediate red-flag that this person is skipping out on work.
7. For personal reasons
If you’re not taking too many personal days and it’s not something you can wait to take, it’s admirable to just be honest with your employer. Let them know, you’re not going to make any excuses and you’re not going to lie, you just need a day for personal reasons. In general, a supervisor might not be impressed with this strategy but if you need a personal day, you need a personal day. Sometimes you’ve got to take that risk.
8. Food poisoning
Particularly if you’re working around food or in a service environment, you don’t want someone who has food poisoning around. The benefit of food poisoning is that it generally clears up within a day or so and does not require a doctor’s note to prove. It’s a pretty solid excuse for missing work however just like the other names on this list, you don’t want to be missing a lot of work no matter the excuse you’re using.
9. Picking up someone from the airport
Airlines are flying people in every day at all ours and this is a very good excuse to use for missing work. Say plans fell through with your family or a friend who is supposed to be picking someone up at the airport and now, the responsibility’s fallen on you to come through. Although you may not be able to get the whole day off, it might be a way to squeak out early.