Employee asks for leave to spend time with girlfriend, honest email lauded by manager: 'Times are changing'

A manager's recent LinkedIn post is sparking conversation about evolving workplace expectations regarding transparency and employee leave. The post featured a screenshot of an email from an employee requesting time off for a very personal reason.

The employee's email requested a day of leave on December 16th. He explained that his girlfriend was leaving for her hometown in Uttarakhand the following day and would be gone until early January, and he wanted to spend time with her before she left.

The email read: “Hi Sir, I wanted to request a leave on 16th December. My girlfriend is leaving for her home in Uttarakhand on the 17th and won't be back until early January, so I'd like to spend that day with her before she leaves. Let me know if this works.”

In his post, the manager reflected on how similar requests might have been handled in the past. He suggested that years ago, employees might have framed such requests quite differently.

“Received this in my inbox recently. A decade ago, this would’ve come as a sudden ‘sick leave’ message at 9:15 AM. Today, it’s a transparent request sent well in advance. Times are changing. And honestly? I prefer this version. Can’t say no to love, can we? Leave approved,” the manager wrote.

The post quickly gained traction, with many LinkedIn users expressing support for both the employee’s honesty and the manager’s understanding response.

That said, the reality is a bit more complicated. some users raised questions about the expectation of disclosing personal reasons for taking time off. One user commented, “Having to give reasons for personal leave is sad. We need to do better. It should be nobody's business whether to meet his boyfriend, or his dog's girlfriend.”

Another user echoed this sentiment, stating, “Still wonder why there’s a need to try so hard to justify personal leave. A healthy work culture should trust people enough that saying, ‘I need a personal day,’ is sufficient.”

In contrast, a third user viewed the request positively, calling it a reasonable and sincere request. “That's really a genuine leave request. Yes, for love and care, it can be always Yes,” they wrote.

Another user shared a more nuanced perspective: "I appreciate the way today’s generation is more open and transparent in their communication—it certainly helps managers plan better and builds trust. But at times, this very transparency can put us in slightly awkward situations. For instance, when someone says they need leave because they want to binge-watch a newly released series, it leaves us wondering how to respond without sounding judgmental. Even personal reasons like “I’m taking the day off to stand in line for the new iPhone launch” or “I need time off because my pet is feeling low” can make the manager feel caught between empathy and professionalism."

Another person commented on the nature of leave itself: "I love the sentiment in this post, but I think it misses something important about how leave actually works in a healthy modern workplace. Leave is not a favor managers “approve.” It is an earned benefit, part of compensation, and employees should not have to justify being human to access it. In my team, I do not "approve" leave at all. My typical response is "noted" and not "approved". I simply note the absence and make sure the work is covered. That is it."