Politeness is a way we found to avoid having conflict with people we owe respect to. But what would happen if you just said whatever comes to mind?

This is what a retail employee did when his boss asked him to go to work even though he was on sick leave after a surgery.

His boss was livid.

Should he apologize? What would you have said?

Keep reading for the full story.

AITAH for telling my boss “Wow that sucks. Doesn’t sound like my problem though.” and then not replying to him after he asked me to cover for someone despite being on sick leave?

So I’m currently recovering from a somewhat minor surgery I had a week ago and am on sick leave for at least 3 weeks, up to 8 depending on how fast the wound heals.

I work part-time as a cashier at a supermarket.

I’m not in the US, so we do have chairs at the register.

Technically my doctor has allowed me to work once I “feel comfortable enough to”.

Currently my boss has quite the personnel issue.

2 of the supervisors are on vacation, another got sick and is out of commission for at least 2 weeks, and 3 of the cashiers are out, including me, which has cut the regular staff more than in half.

It seems his boss didn’t plan things through.

I know this because I still read the group chat even though I’m sick in case something still important comes up.

Generally I don’t have the best workplace relationship with my boss, since he tends to suck up to problem customers including two that have threatened me.

Also, letting a former regular who had been banned pay, despite me telling them that they were banned and had to leave.

My boss has, in his desperation, called me up today, about a week after surgery, asking me to cover for one of the remaining cashiers who had dropped out.

But that would disturb his recovery process.

I then reminded him that I was, in fact, on sick leave and that I can’t be asked to work on such short notice anyways.

(Technically the schedule has to be available in its final state 14 days in advance per our contract, but that has never been the case in my 3+ years here).

Then he told me that he doesn’t have anyone else to cover from our store and doesn’t want to call corporate to ask for one of their guys to cover…

Since that reduces his end of year bonus and makes him look bad this early in the year, to which I replied:

“Wow that sucks. Doesn’t sound like my problem though” followed by a cordial but quick goodbye, then ended the call and put my phone on do not disturb.

But his boss did not like that at all, as one would expect.

After apparently trying to call me for a good 5 more times he then sent a lengthy text wall telling me off for how unprofessional and rude I am for not helping out, which has been deleted by now since he deletes his texts after 24 hours.

(I think that’s just a setting you can change?)

One of my fellow cashiers has since messaged me saying that the boss is venting about how much of an *** I was, and that I really should have compromised and offered to work a half shift at least.

He’s wondering if he’s in the wrong for saying no.

Technically I am able to sit for 4 hours, so I would be able to work with only a moderate amount of pain, but I don’t want to compromise my recovery.

Also it’s not like he can fire me for this, since as a student worker I can only be let go for very specific reasons, which are generally doing illegal stuff and/or not doing my job whilst on the clock.

AITA?

I can’t believe the absolute madlad said that to his boss. But I’m even more shocked that his boss even asked.

Let’s see if Reddit is as baffled as I am.

Very robust, indeed.

Screenshots are free.

Yup.

Another reader chimes in.

He could have handled it a bit better.

Ignoring the call would have been a better approach than this reply.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check this one out about a man who created a points system for his inheritance, and a family friend ends up getting almost all of it.