A sly way to call in sick at work

A sly way to call in sick at work

A service in the US promises to offer you just that, and presents a get-out clause for avoiding those calls you hate to make.

October 9, 2008 1:05 by kippreport

There is always the call that you are sometimes forced to make, when you hope that the person you are dialing doesn’t pick up the phone.

Trends Central talks about Slydial, a service in the US that directs people’s phone calls directly to the voicemail of the person they are calling. Users dial 267-SLYDIAL (267-759-3425) before entering the phone number of the person they’re trying to contact. Most phones receiving the call won’t ring at all before sending the call straight through to voicemail. But when the phone owner retrieves their messages, their voicemail service will still tell them the caller’s number. The service is free if users are prepared to listen to a short ad, but there is also the option to pay 15 cents per use or $4.95 per month for unlimited usage.

This is surely a service skiving employees around the world would love to use – imagine calling in “sick” and knowing you’d not have to speak to your boss, just leave a message on his voicemail – and one which could prove promising financially for the company offering it.

Apart from using it for excuses in office, the service would also work for avoiding those gossipy aunts and boring friends who you really ought to call.

So is this new service coming to the city? We certainly look forward to it if it is.