Quake3World

The Discussion....

Someone's pet dies. That person calls into work to say they're not coming in because of it. My question is, how understanding should their supervisor be?

I'm of the opinion that it's an animal, it's already dead and there is nothing you can do. The person involved should collect themselves, go to work and deal with the problem in their off hours. Others would say that this is a valid reason to miss work because of the trauma associated with such a tragedy. This is the point where I ask why? Is grieving for an animal worth potentially screwing up your professional appeal? I'm of the opinion that people who can not separate themselves from their emotional bonds to an animal long enough to do their jobs are ultimately weak and you won’t be able to depend on them when times get rough.

Now I do truly understand the deep relationships that are formed between people and their pets. I've had pets all my life and I have two of them now. But when you are an adult, you should be able to maintain your composure long enough fulfill your professional obligations. Not run off like a child and cry in the corner.

What do you think?

ur just an asshole

it depends on the person, the pet and the job - and you're an asshole.

I'd say it's just a pet. It would be sad, but jesus, it's not like your mother or wife died.

wow.

yes you are.

but do you have a pet?
if not i can understand.

I dont have a kid, if someone took like off work cos their kid had a cold, i would think they were a cunt..send the kid to school and go to work..cos i dont have a kid.

when one of my dogs died, i took time off work and even in a selfish work orientated nation like japan, my boss understood and didnt kick my ass at all.

YourGrandpa wrote: I'm of the opinion that it's an animal, it's already dead and there is nothing you can do.

no shit! But if it's a primate like us in question, you can do some voodoo ritual and bring it back.

Your analysis is vacuous as it stands, since the same logic could be applied to a child who has just died.

It's different when somebody is sick, because they have to be cared for. Death is diffy, theres nothing more that can be done. I don't think I've ever skipped anything because a relative died, let alone a pet. I blame our culture of children coddling. They grow up to be pussies.

If someone I loved died...Im taking the day off. Its none of your fucking buisness what species it is.


So yah... You're an asshole.

also i guess it depends on the job...some people consider their job to be worth far more to society that it actually is...

Im a teacher, i take days off as and when I wish, and apart from some little shit not getting taught english for a day, there is no great loss, however if I was a doctor scheduled to perform a life saving operation, i would have to be dying in order to take a day off.

id have to say your an asshole too

im loosing a close member of my family and im entitled to my day off

To answer some questions:

I do have and have had pets. Currently we have a cat, a dog and three turtles.

I also have a child.

I truly consider the person that draws a direct correlation between human and animal life to be an idiot....

I don't think that I would ever fire someone for taking time off to morn their loss of an animal. I'd just question their reliability and dedication.

You might not be an asshole but I think you're one of those guys who takes his job more seriously than he should.

First time I've ever agreed with gramps. Time off for a dead dog? Fucksakes, lazy cunts like that are why my pension's getting fucked.

apparently it's one of the most stressful things that can happen to a person.

YourGrandpa wrote: I'd just question their reliability and dedication.

Only an asshole would say that.

the way i see it is - its only a day off

horton wrote:also i guess it depends on the job...some people consider their job to be worth far more to society that it actually is...

Im a teacher, i take days off as and when I wish, and apart from some little shit not getting taught english for a day, there is no great loss, however if I was a doctor scheduled to perform a life saving operation, i would have to be dying in order to take a day off.

Since I've been a "professional" (not some teen job at a burger joint), my job has been a prime responsibility. People rely on me to be there to do it. When ever I'm not there, someone has to pick up the slack. And I'm sure most of us know how much it sucks to pick up some other losers slack. So no matter what you do, you should have a respect for the obligations bestowed upon you and the people that would have to fill the gaps in your absence.

typical hard nut manager tbh

you in the retail environment or someshit like that ?

What do you care what he uses his day off for?

Don't you get a certain number of personal days where you work? Do you not take yours?

Two factors involved: what are this person's job responsibilities, and is he/she a reliable employee?

Responsibilities. Are they a crucial member of a team, where their absence has a severe effect on the work your company gets done for the day? If so, then either this person does not understand the responsibilities of their job, or needs to be explained that pet grieving, while respected, should not find its way onto a job where they play such an important part.

Reliability. Do they rarely call in sick or absent except for real emergencies and have otherwise been highly reliability? If so, then you should take their pet grieving seriously, as it does not seem to be an 'excuse' and they really seem to be taking the loss of their pet deeply. Respect that.

I've had pets all my life and I have two of them now. But when you are an adult, you should be able to maintain your composure long enough fulfill your professional obligations. Not run off like a child and cry in the corner.

It is not your place to extend your morality onto the workplace: workers are expected to be reliable and do their job well, and it is assumed that there will be personal emergencies that come up every once in a while. If this is considered an 'emergency' to them, then I think it is right to respect that. Obviously, if they seem to be having an 'emergency' every other week, then they are not reliable and you can have the honors of dropping them.

IMHO, if you drop an otherwise reliable and hard working employee because of this one incident then you are the one being unprofessional, as you are not judging them on their overall worth to the company.

BTW, yes I think you're an asshole for thinking less of the person.

Kaz wrote:You might not be an asshole but I think you're one of those guys who takes his job more seriously than he should.

No, I think my priorities are a bit different. A dead animal doesn't = a day off to me.

YourGrandpa wrote:
And I'm sure most of us know how much it sucks to pick up some other losers slack. So no matter what you do, you should have a respect for the obligations bestowed upon you and the people that would have to fill the gaps in your absence.

Sounds to me like you may have some other feelings about this guy. Pet be dead or not, it seems you don't like him.

As for me I would be willing to pick up the slack for someone if they had a dog die that they where very attached to. If it was a cat, they can forget about it though.

lol, only a complete homo would ask for time off work because their pet died.