On AWOL and Training Allowance

I received two questions from readers on the topic recently. I have already responded to them but decided to share my thought with the rest of yous in this blog.

First question:

What does AWOL mean?

if you informed your supervisor about the reason why you are absent prior to start of shift and submitted a medical certificate to certify sickness, is it still considered AWOL?

My answer:
AWOL is absence without leave. In other companies, they add the word "official" so it becomes "Absence Without Official Leave". It means that if you did not abide by the company's policy on filing or notification, it will be considered a violation of company's attendance policy. Now, if you followed the rules, there is no reason for them to charge you with that violation. If they think your reason is not sufficient excuse to be absent, the one thing they can do is disapprove your leave application. Hence, you will not be able to use your leave credit. Many supervisors get confused with these rules and fail to apply the appropriate measures. I suggest that you go back to your supervisor and point out how you followed the company policy on filing for sick leave. If you are not satisfied. you can always bring up your concern to HR.

2nd Question:

Hi! I have been recently hired by an employer . I will be assigned to a new branch. Since the new branch isn't finished yet, they told us to come to the first branch to come for training. I have already been training for 4 days now. (training days are usually on weekends) And then I find out that there is no training allowance. The employer said that they want us to use that time to familiarize ourselves with the stuff needed for the job, therefore the training would not be paid until the new branch opens. Problem is, the new branch is slated to open August 1 but because of other circumstances, it might be later. Is this fair? No allowance until the new branch opens?

My answer:

From an employee perspective, I say that you get what you bargain for. You need to be clear about the details of the engagement including training allowances before getting on board so you won't be frustrated. If and only if you are happy with the deal should you move forward with the engagement. If you feel you've been tricked, move out of there unless you want more tricks in the future.

From an employers perspective, I opine that not giving employees allowance during training is cold especially in a country like ours where a lot of workers get so little in exchange for back-breaking work. The least you can do for your trainees is cover their transportation and meal expenses while they are undergoing "training" which to some of us became synonimous to free or cheap labor. I'm not a lawyer and I'm not sure if there's a law that prescribes giving training allowance. I just think that giving them is the right and moral thing to do.

By the way, to those who are wondering why their questions were not featured here, let me tell you that I receive them and has replied to most of you. I choose what I post depending on how I feel about their usefulness to others. There are some questions that I completely ignore because they are hard to understand.

If you have any questions and you think you can benefit from my opinions, please send them using the form on the right or by posting your question in the comment section of this blog like others do. When you do however, please give me enough details to go with.