We all get sick, even fitness trainers. Sadly, pretty much everyone in this wonderful late-stage capitalist society of ours, that is not at all falling apart around us, has found themselves getting penalized, or at least poorly treated to some degree, for taking an unavoidable day-off.
For TikToker Allie, however, the reaction from her employee to her totally understandable decision to take a sick day was so overwhelmingly unfair and OTT that something has surely got to be done about it. Allie, a fitness instructor by occupation, had to call out sick from teaching a class due to running a high fever — it was so bad that her boyfriend had to leave work himself to take her for treatment at Urgent Care. In Allie’s words, “Yeah… So, I got fired for that.”
As per a screenshot Allie shared, what happened was she sent a text explaining the situation to her boss, as well as a photo of the thermometer confirming her 100 F plus temperature. The upshot? Her employer wrote back “Good bye, Allie” with a waving emoji and kicked her out of the groupchat.
As Allie additionally explains in her caption, this is only the second time she has ever called out sick during this job, so it’s not like she’d even been building up a troubling pattern. The good people of TikTok were furious on her behalf, with Allie’s employer, Scott H, becoming one of the app’s latest and most hated villains. Especially given how he complained that he couldn’t cover her class because he had a headache. “The fact that he said he had a headache LMAO like he can be sick but u can’t,” read one comment.
Others piped up to offer Allie some practical advice, with many encouraging her to sue her belligerent boss. “Sue. I’m begging u,” wrote one. “Contact your state labor department they will open a case and you’ll get paiddddd,” said another. Someone who really knows what they’re talking about also weighed in: “Been in HR for 10 years. At will employment is not as cut and dry as it seems. Reach out to an employment lawyer.”
As it happens, in an update video, Allie — in a much happier mood, as she was this time joined by her boyfriend and dog — clarified that she does have another job, so she’s unlikely to attempt to sue, but she just wanted to share the unfair practices of her former employer.
For those who do get fired from a job — and, unlike Allie, don’t have another to fall back on — and feel that they have been wrongfully terminated, there are some steps you can take. Depending on where you live, getting fired for taking a sick day could be considered an example of simply exercising your right under state labor laws, so that would be classified as wrongful termination. According to the U.S. government, you should seek legal counsel if you’re in this situation, and if you do decide to sue, you must first file a report with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
It sounds like Allie’s going to let him off the hook, but Mr. Scott H could’ve had a much bigger headache if she’d decided to take legal action.