Indian manager's bizarre 'Sir' demand in sick leave text ignites online debate on workplace culture

A truly head-scratching text exchange between an Indian manager and his employee has taken the internet by storm, sparking a fiery debate about hierarchy and communication in Indian workplaces.

The bizarre conversation, initially shared on Reddit, shows a manager scolding his employee for not addressing him as "sir" in a sick leave message.

The incident has resonated with many, highlighting what some are calling an outdated emphasis on rigid formalities, even in casual communications.

What happened?

It all began when the employee sent a straightforward message informing his manager he was unwell and would be taking sick leave. The text read: "Good morning. I wanted to let you know that I am feeling a bit unwell today due to an upset stomach – probably from something I ate yesterday.

I’ve applied for leave on the app."

The manager's initial reply was abrupt and unclear: "Need only today’s update… Yesterday is gone." This left the employee understandably confused, leading to a series of exchanges where the manager's directives remained muddled.

But the conversation took a sharp turn when the employee responded with a simple "Aa ok." This seemingly innocuous reply seemed to really irk the manager.

"Reply in a good manner," the manager shot back. When the employee, still bewildered, asked what was rude about his message, the manager's true grievance became clear: "You can say ok sir," he explained, explicitly stating his demand to be addressed as "sir."

He went on to nitpick the employee's choice of words, insisting, "And you have to inform me… not let me know. Try using good words when communicating to a senior manager." This was despite the manager's own messages being riddled with grammatical errors.

The back-and-forth continued, with the employee maintaining his messages were polite and the manager stubbornly disagreeing, even providing an example of what he deemed a "polite" way to communicate: "I want to inform you sir…"

Expectation?

The screenshots, posted on Reddit's popular 'Indian Workplace' community, quickly led users to conclude that the manager's primary issue was the lack of the honorific "sir."

A user wrote, "When I joined the workforce 10 years ago, my manager used to get offended if I called him sir and made it very clear to me that at work you should address everyone by name. Since when has this changed?"

Another user wrote, "Still the same in most companies. These idiots want to feel powerful. They lack it otherwise and wish to be been respected and want their ass licked because they want to feel power. Typical Indian mentality of, “Respect your elders. The manager is a red flag. And this is the same old toxicity in India. So freaking proud of your friend who stood his/her ground rather than saying sorry sir, I will kiss your ass tomorrow."

"Its not, no one calls anyone sir in my whole organisation even if its VP. Some organisations really need to drive right culture," the third shared.