Every once in a while, you have one of those days wherein you wake up in the morning and your body is just not ready to head to work. It is fairly common these days to be feeling under the weather and you just don’t have the energy to make the long commute to work and spend eight hours at your desk. In some cases, you may be really unwell — you may have a high fever, severe splitting headaches, or an upset stomach that has you visiting the bathroom every few minutes.

Whatever the reason, you may have to write a Sick Day Email to your manager or workplace one day or the other. In most workplaces, it is the protocol to call in sick or send a sick day email, so that your supervisor, as well as your teammates, are aware of your absence in the office and necessary actions can be taken to cover up for you. The specific requirements vary from workplace to workplace, but the general gist of a sick day email is fairly common. Here’s what you should know about writing a Sick Leave Email to your workplace.

How to Write a Sick Day Email

  1. Notify early — It is important to let your manager and teammates know that you’re calling in sick for the day as early as possible. This allows them to prepare alternate arrangements, offload your tasks to others, and schedule their own tasks accordingly.
  2. Keep it simple & to the point — When you write the sick day email, ensure that you write a simple and subject and keep the body of the email to the point. Mention why you’re calling in sick, and how long do you expect to be away. Don’t be overly formal and also don’t write complex and long paragraphs.
  3. Inform about your availability — As much as possible, let your coworkers know about your availability and how to reach you. In some cases, if you’re working from home, let them know how you’ll be available.
  4. Mention any immediate action points — If there are some urgent tasks that need to be attended to, let your manager or teammates know about them so that the necessary alternative action can be taken. In all likelihood, those tasks are to be assigned to someone else on the team. If there’s a client meeting scheduled that you’re going to miss due to your sickness, ensure that someone from the team is tasked with informing the client as well.

Sick Day Email Samples

Here are some examples that should help you understand how to write a Sick Leave Email. Feel free to copy these free email templates and edit them in your email app of choice. We recommend Spark where you can save multiple email templates and send them with a few clicks.

Example A: Basic Sick Leave Email Sample

Subject: Sick Leave – [Your Full Name]

Hi [Name],

I woke up this morning with a [insert reason here, such as severe fever] and have to be on my prescribed medication starting today. As a result, I have to take a few sick days off, so that I can rest and hope that I can recover soon.

I’ll make sure I finish all my assigned tasks by the end of this week/early next week. For any urgent matters, [name of a colleague] can cover for me. I am available via Slack & Email for any assistance.

I hope to be back at work in a couple of days and will keep you updated on my progress.

Thank you for understanding.

Best regards,
[Your Full Name]

Example B: Unpaid Sick Leave Email Template

Subject: Unpaid Sick Leave – [Your Full Name]

Hi [Name],

I’m writing to inform you that I have been feeling unwell since last night, due to which I am unable to attend the office. I’ve been diagnosed with a [severe case of food poisoning] and have been advised rest for [#] days.

Since I do not have any sick leaves left on my calendar, I understand that my absence during my recovery will be marked as unpaid sick leave.

I will try to make myself available on Slack or email for any assistance during this recovery.

Thank you for understanding.

Best regards,
[Your Full Name]

These email samples give you a good idea of how to write the perfect sick leave email to your manager or HR.

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