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I asked my boss if I can stay home on Monday, because of some personal reasons. He said, "yes no problem" because we had completed our work and there was nothing to do.

And he would be there on Monday, so, there would be no problem caused by me staying home.

But, afterwards, the HR rep asked me to sign a written warning (advertence) for my absence. I referred HR to my manager, but they just told me they can't do anything because my boss didn't warn them about my absence. How can I be punished if my boss had authorized me to stay home?

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    Thanks, @Neuromancer. "Advertencia" is really normal here in Brazil. and by the way, they're not removing the warning. maybe this is something to make me move my sticks, and move on ( to another company that respects the employee from what they do, not if we are here in time).
    – Green Baloon
    May 21, 2018 at 18:02
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    @tom This is Brazil, so there isn't a concept such as PTO. You have 30 consecutive "vacation days" once a year, that can be split in 2 or 3 parts, but you can't use individual days in the same sense as the more flexible PTO. What the OP did was a "Approved Abstence", which means he doesn't need to go to work, shouldn't get any advertence, and would have those hours disconted from him unless he works extra on a couple of other days.
    – T. Sar
    May 22, 2018 at 13:41

4 Answers 4

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Simply refer HR to your boss, indicating that your boss gave you the permission to be at home on that day.

Then let your boss sort things out on your behalf.

This should be fairly straightforward and the absence/disciplinary warning notice should accordingly be removed from your record.

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    @GreenBaloon If your boss won't stand up for you to correct this situation so that HR removes their warning, then I'd have concerns about future/long-term prospects at that employer. But that's just me.
    – code_dredd
    May 21, 2018 at 18:05
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    Then you need to speak with your boss directly and see what he says. If HR are sure about their process, then it’s your bosses fault that you’re in trouble now.
    – user44108
    May 21, 2018 at 18:34
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    @GreenBaloon In the future, one thing you can do to guard against this sort of situation is to make sure to use some kind of written communication, like e-mail. Having a written record of these sorts of decisions is gold when conflicts like this arise. If your boss is supposed to notify them, having the record shows he failed to provide them notice, rather than you being absent without permission. If he resists giving you written permission, then you have your answer about whether your boss is looking out for himself or for you.
    – jpmc26
    May 21, 2018 at 18:39
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    If I asked my boss if I can stay home tomorrow and not work and he said yes - without further clarification, it would be understood, that I'm not going to be treated as present since I did not work. So that day would have to come out of my annual leave allotment. Note, that this would be implicit understanding without him or me explicit mentioning it. So maybe your problem is misunderstanding between you and your boss - what you asked, and what he has granted you in response.
    – Andrew Savinykh
    May 21, 2018 at 19:42
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    @AndrewSavinykh - I don't think OP is questioning time being assessed against his/her leave bank, this sounds like an absenteeism demerit or mark in the personnel record. I could be wrong, though, but that was how I interpreted this.
    – PoloHoleSet
    May 22, 2018 at 15:31
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For comparison, here is the procedure at my work:

  • Ask boss. Get permission. (spoken)
  • Formally apply for leave using a computerized timekeeping system.
  • HR sees this application, asks boss if it is OK. Hopefully they say yes. For trusted employees, don't bother asking boss.
  • Application is formally approved. Note that this might happen after the actual leave if you apply the last day before. But that is fine.
  • First day after leave, tell the timekeeping system that "Yes, I was absent." (This is still fine if the leave is approved later, as long as the application was entered before)

Now, are you sure your employer doesn't have a similar system and you skipped some steps out of ignorance?

You have been given a written warning not to do this again. Ask HR politely exactly what you did wrong. In other words, ask what the proper procedure is to avoid this problem in the future.

Be calm, be polite and listen to what they say.

In a comment you seem to be saying that your boss didn't do the proper paper work. If that turns out to be true, ask HR politely how you should best insure that your boss does things correctly.

Be calm, be polite and listen to what they say.

A warning is just a warning and not a punishment in itself. As long as you do not repeat your offense things should work out.

You might say at this point, "But it's not fair!" This is true, but the worlds is not a fair place. If your employer turns out to be even less fair than average, you might want to look for other work, but this single case doesn't sound like worse than average to me.

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    Yes. I think it's time to leave. I'm used to work in places where they pay attention to what you do. not what time you put your finger on that machine to mark your time of arrival.
    – Green Baloon
    May 22, 2018 at 12:29
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    @GreenBaloon "Yes. I think it's time to leave." Er, the answer doesn't seem to say that at all to me.
    – David Richerby
    May 22, 2018 at 17:30
  • I would agree but only if said warning was not recorded or part of a "warning system" put in place where the next step is an actual punishment, as OP didn't actually do anything wrong.
    – The Anathema
    May 22, 2018 at 20:33
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Explain to your boss that you need to arrange a meeting with HR, you and him. The reaction should tell you all you need to know. Regardless, ask for that meeting. Either he and you will be as one against HR, or he'll pass the buck, at which point a good move would be to hand in your notice. I thought HR stood for human resources, although several other ideas flashed into my mind.

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    @David Richerby: Trying to straighten out a miscommunication somewhere is an excellent reason for everyone to meet. Otherwise you just generate more and more miscommunication.
    – A. I. Breveleri
    May 22, 2018 at 19:14
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    This is not something simple that can be dealt with by email. OP has already been told different things at different times by different people, and has justification for being dissatisfied. - OP is describing a situation that has already turned serious.
    – A. I. Breveleri
    May 22, 2018 at 21:13
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    @DavidRicherby - it seems like HR isn't backing down, maybe because they have more info., maybe because they're ignorant of the situation. Either way, if it's a lost email initially, why trust another email. My point is that I would feel it's my neck on the line, so I want it sorted face to face. Emails get misinterpreted as well as misplaced.
    – Tim
    May 22, 2018 at 21:15
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    @DavidRicherby - human resources may be a misnomer. It sounds like the OP has been asked to sign something he's unhappy with. Shouldn't HR be capable of discussing the issue face to face? Emails are quite impersonal. Maybe I've the wrong end of HR, but I felt they existed to sort out problems with humans.
    – Tim
    May 23, 2018 at 10:02
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    @Tim You can only see vote tallies if you have 1000+ reputation. I don't understand why -- surely low-rep users would benefit from seeing the detail, at least on their own questions.
    – David Richerby
    May 30, 2018 at 11:16
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As Snow stated in his response, let your boss handle this. I would recommend against signing anything and just keep referring the issue to your boss. He was the one who allowed it and gave you authorization, so he should be the one to answer to HR if they take issue to it.

If they keep trying to come after you, I would escalate it to someone higher up in HR.

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