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I work with a small team of people. We all work remotely. In general we have very few official policies. When I started the job I asked what are the work hours. My manager told me that they are "regular". I have a appointment next week where I will be unavailable for work for about an hour. It's in the middle of the day. As a courtesy should I message my manager and person I work closest with that I will be unavailable from 11:00-1:00. How should I phrase it? Nobody else has sent this type of meeting to me. Perhaps it would be better for me to bring it up in the next meeting with my manager.

I would prefer not to elaborate on the details with my colleagues, but I was asked to attend a meeting with a recreation center I took classes with several months ago. All they would tell me was that there were multiple allegations about my behavior. (I know this isn't a workplace question, but I find it a bit unprofessional being asked to come to a meeting without being told the specific topic). When missing work, is it expected to give some sort of reason to the absence? For example was common to state "I have a doctors appointment" in other places I worked.

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    If you need to take time off in the middle of the day, you should ask your manager. You can't just decide to not work when you want. Just say you have an appointment you need to attend to and would like to take leave.
    – Gregory Currie
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 4:00
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    If you need a slightly longer lunch break than usual, ask your manager. Then, before you leave, update your chat software to give you a status that says what time you will be available again. If someone needs to talk to you, they can see the status.
    – Gregory Currie
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 4:08
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    I'd decline the meeting unless given good reason not to, and demand a refund on the course I paid for. Meetings you cannot prepare for are often traps. It's a common ploy. You weaken your position before it even starts just by going on your own time and their convenience rather than yours. You get confronted with things they won't give you a chance to refute and it's difficult to be confident because you're in their space with no prep, often in a hostile environment prone to be confused by people who spent the morning rehearsing their spiel in the mirror and collecting their arguments.
    – Kilisi
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 9:41
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    I'm with @Kilisi. I'd be taking a very hardline approach, and demanding they satisfy their end of the agreement. I'd also be demanding to know the context of the discussion, especially if I'd have to take time off work.
    – Gregory Currie
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 10:19
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    @user47428, Absolutely do not go to that meeting! Or at the very least, have someone older you trust go on your behalf. If they won't tell what it's about over the phone, it's either a fishing expedition or it's an ambush. Either way, it's probably serious (since they won't tell you what it is) and it's no good for you to go without knowing what's it's about. I'm with Kilisi on that one. You're an adult, not a child. Do not go. If they won't let you attend that class, ask for a refund in writing. And avoid that recreation center in the future.
    – Stephan Branczyk
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 14:18

3 Answers 3

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You can do two things:

  1. Inform your manager that you'd need a slightly longer lunch break for a day as you'd need to step out for an appointment.

  2. Once acknowledged by your manager, create a meeting in the mail / chat application for that duration without any other attendee, and mark your status as unavailable / out-of-office for that duration.

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    Generally the developer group will have some slack / google chat channel. You can change the status there or inform there.
    – chendu
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 6:27
  • @chendu if available, yes.
    – Sourav Ghosh
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 6:28
  • @chendu What is a developer group?
    – Gregory Currie
    Commented Oct 21, 2022 at 9:40
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The existing answers (about informing your manager, making your team aware in Slack, blocking off time on your calendar, etc.) are good, but I think the one thing missing is asking your Manager and/or team how to request and communicate time off for appointments.

Everyone has appointments and sometimes they are during work hours. There is nothing wrong or unusual about it. The variable is how teams request and communicate it.

So before you try the suggestions, I recommend asking how the team handles these things and then follow the team's method.

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On an earlier company I worked, there is a slack channel that was specifically for this purpose. If I am going away for more than 30 minutes or so, I should put it there.

In absence of that, just tell your manager. You can compensate for the time by working longer, or whatever is decided.

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