For juniors, Gurgaon has plenty of rainy-day bunk excuses

For Gurgaon’s junior-level employees, staying in bed on a rainy day is that much easier. As its infamous waterlogging and public transport woes during the rains make for ready excuses, bosses report as much as a 20% spike in absentees.
20% increase in leave-takers
Udit Mittal, managing director at Unison, rues, “On a rainy day, employees want to relax at home or enjoy the weather.But the thing with Gurgaon is that everyone can have the excuse of roads being waterlogged or not finding transport. Every day, we hear things like ‘there is no means of transport in the rain’ or that ‘we got wet in the rain, so we have fever now’. There has been an increase of 20% in the number of leave-takers since the monsoon started. Then there are also the late-comers, but you can’t say anything to them because even when I travel to GK, where I live, I take four hours on a rainy day. Toh phir lagta hai ki yaar bechaara, woh bhi aise hi traffic mein phasa hoga. Work has definitely suffered, but you can’t help it. It may be genuine for some, but obviously not for all.”
Scooters give more excuses
Yagika Madan, head of brand and marketing at Big Boy Toyz, says, “Half the people are actually unwell, while the other half take advantage. Once, a junior made an excuse ki car mein paani bhar gaya, so he didn’t show up. It was hard to believe. And instead of the one weekly off, people are taking an extra day off every week because of the rain excuse – especially those who ride bikes. Our sales team on the field just calls and says they’re stuck in rain. Sometimes they even switch their phones off and say phone mein paani chala gaya tha. Then laptops get ‘wet’ too, so another whole day is taken to get it fixed. This has been happening for two months.”
Scooter mein paani and insect bites
Gaurav Khera, associate director of a marketing company, tells us about the excuses he gets to hear. “There are new stories every day. Someone says scooter ke silencer mein paani chala gaya. Koi scooter repair kara raha hai toh will come in the afternoon. Recently, someone said ki baarish mein keede ne kaat liye. One of my designers called and said he had fever, but when he came next day, he looked so hale and hearty that it was hard to believe. He said the doctor gave him an injection so he’s fine. All these people bring medical certificates. We don’t know if they’re real or fake, but we can’t do much.”
Caught in the act
Preeti Kanwar*, an IT professional, says, “ I didn’t feel like going to work last week, so I told my boss I had viral fever. It’s the most believable excuse nowadays and he bought it. But the week after, I actually got the flu and didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t ask for leave again! I kept coming to work in my sickly state and cursed myself for being lazy the previous week. My boss asked me, ‘You haven’t been fine for a week?’ and I really didn’t know what to say. I just smiled and told him I am getting better.”
My boss offered to rescue me from my, err, fake pothole
Manavi Kriplani*, 29, an advertising professional, tells us, “Gurgaon roads have a wretched reputation, and being a girl, you can always make the excuse of your car being stuck in a pothole. But some days ago, I called my senior saying my car was stuck, so I’d come by noon. He got worried and said he’ll come over and help. I got all confused and without thinking, said my husband was coming, so I’d be at work in an hour. So, I had to get out of bed!”
Seniors can’t bunk
Shobhit Elhance, vice-president at Applane, says bunking office isn’t an option for seniors. “If it starts raining in the day, there isn’t any waterlogging on the roads, so that excuse isn’t really valid. In the evenings, yes, it’s difficult to commute. But for senior and mid-level employees, it’s not possible to bunk even for genuine reasons because of the responsibilities. Work can’t happen otherwise.” Aanchal Bajaj, sourcing analyst for Accenture, agrees, “Someone who is on a contract, or is a temporary employee, can take the liberty of working from home or missing a day. There are pick and drop services for all full-time employees at our company, so you can’t make the excuse of a bad road. But yes, sick leaves have increased by 20%.” Kanwar Sarvagya Singh, regional business head of Jaypee Group, says, “In MNCs, it’s very difficult for senior professionals to miss even a day. Juniors and trainees do have that liberty.”
(*Names changed on request)