Boss Won’t Approve Woman’s Leave, Finally Complies After She Refuses To Cancel Tenerife Vacay Plan

Working constantly is no good as your brain and your body need rest in between, and going on vacation is what helps the most. After all, we are not robots. Now, imagine you plan the perfect escape but your boss throws water on it by not approving your leaves.

Sounds super annoying, doesn’t it? The original poster (OP) lost it after her line manager refused to approve her leaves as she found out the details about her holiday. The woman felt that OP wouldn’t be “fit to work” after she returned, so here’s what she did!

More info: Mumsnet

Working constantly, without going on holiday, can drive anyone nuts, especially if your leave isn’t approved

Woman enjoying Tenerife beach while working on laptop, wearing sunhat and sunglasses, blocked from vacation by boss over focus concerns

Image credits: Wavebreak Media / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The poster works in a medium-sized company in the UK, and recently got a new line manager, who seems fine enough

Woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss over concerns about sun, sand, and cocktails affecting her work focus.

Text about staff leave approval and work coverage, related to woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss over focus concerns.

Text on a white background stating a team of 5 and line manager managing holidays to suit everyone.

Woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss who says sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus and work performance.

Image credits: Truffleshuffle84

Man and woman having a serious discussion in office while woman holds a travel tumbler during a Tenerife vacation debate.

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The line manager asked for her plans when she put in her leave, but she refused to approve it as the poster won’t be “fit to work” after returning

Text excerpt from a woman’s Tenerife vacay request blocked by her boss, sharing holiday plans and responses.

Text about a woman’s Tenerife vacay leave request rejected by boss due to concerns over focus after sun, sand, and cocktails.

Alt text: Text discussing a woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss due to concerns over sun, sand, and cocktails ruining her focus.

Image credits: Truffleshuffle84

Woman in office checking watch anxiously, illustrating boss blocking Tenerife vacay due to focus concerns with work distractions.

Image credits: lookstudio / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The poster was livid as she felt that what she does during her time off is none of the company’s business

Text excerpt about a woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by her boss over sun, sand, and cocktails affecting her focus.

Text message showing woman firm on her Tenerife vacay plans despite boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus.

Email screenshot showing a woman’s Tenerife vacay request blocked by boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus.

Image credits: Truffleshuffle84

Woman working at desk on phone, focused and concerned as her Tenerife vacay is blocked by her boss’s decision.

Image credits: shurkin_son / Freepik (not the actual photo)

She replied claiming that she can work even if she returns the night before and she’s not canceling her plans

Update text on a white background describing reply sent about woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss over focus concerns.

Email from boss blocking woman’s Tenerife vacay, citing concerns over work focus after holiday return.

Text excerpt from a woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss who claims sun, sand, and cocktails ruin her work focus.

Text on a white background stating a woman’s approved leave has been annoying after her boss blocked her Tenerife vacay plans.

Image credits: Truffleshuffle84

The line manager made a snarky reply, but approved the poster’s leaves, and although she was glad about it, she still found it annoying

Today, the poster tells her how her new line manager made things difficult for her when it came to her leave. She has been working in a medium-sized company in the UK for the past 8 years, and never had any problem with their leave policy. As per the staff handbook, the line manager approves it based on the business need and staff numbers, which sounds fair enough.

Recently, however, her team got a new line manager from a different department, and she seems fine, as they get along. However, when OP asked for a week off in autumn, she got curious and asked her the details. The poster felt that she was just having a casual conversation, so she shared that she was going to Tenerife, and she would return Sunday night at 10:30 PM. 

Next thing she knew, her leave got rejected! Apparently, the manager thinks she won’t be “fit enough” to work on Monday, and her work performance would be affected. The poster just lost it as she felt it’s none of the company’s business what she does during her days off. I, for one, totally agree with her, just like netizens, who felt that the boss took things too far.

Well, OP updated us that she wrote back to the woman, claiming she won’t be canceling her plans and that she will be perfectly fit to work. The lady replied quite grumpily that she has finally approved the leaves, but she expects that OP won’t slack off on Monday. While our poster was happy that she finally approved it, she still felt annoyed by the whole incident.

Woman working on laptop at home, appearing stressed as her Tenerife vacay is blocked by boss over focus concerns.

Image credits: grustock / Freepik (not the actual photo)

To get a deeper insight into holidays and workplace dynamics, Bored Panda got in touch with HR specialist Nicola Dias. She claimed that annual leave is a personal entitlement, and how it is used, whether for rest, travel, or family time, should be up to the individual. 

Nicola believes that as long as the employee meets their contractual obligations and operational needs are covered, the specific details of their trip shouldn’t factor into the approval process. Besides, micromanaging how an employee uses their leave, especially questioning their ability to work based on return flight times or travel destinations, can undermine trust and damage morale, she added.

“It shifts the focus from professionalism and accountability to personal judgment, which can create tension and a sense of being overly controlled. In modern workplaces that value autonomy and output, this level of scrutiny is often seen as unnecessary and counterproductive,” our expert explained.

She also stressed that in most cases, it’s just not appropriate for managers to make assumptions about an employee’s fitness for work based solely on their personal travel plans. Nicola also advised, “A more appropriate managerial approach would be to evaluate leave requests based on business coverage, team capacity, and fairness, not on speculation about personal choices.”

Looks like this new line manager has a lot to learn, right? What would you do if you were in the poster’s shoes? Let us know in the comments below!

People were baffled by the line manager, as they completely agreed it’s none of the company’s business what she does on holiday

Woman frustrated on a phone call as her Tenerife vacay is blocked by boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus.

Woman frustrated as Tenerife vacation blocked by boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails will affect her work focus.

Comment expressing outrage over a boss blocking a woman’s Tenerife vacay, claiming sun, sand, and cocktails ruin her focus.

Comment from user CherryYellowCouch advising to contact line manager, HR, and union over boss blocking Tenerife vacay, questioning manager’s judgment.

Screenshot of an online comment discussing a woman’s Tenerife vacay being blocked by her boss due to concerns about focus.

Woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss deciding sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus and work performance.

Comment on a forum expressing distrust after a woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss due to sun, sand, and cocktails concerns.

Comment about a woman’s Tenerife vacay blocked by boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails will ruin her focus on holiday.

Screenshot of a user explaining how their Tenerife vacay was blocked by boss fearing sun, sand, and cocktails would ruin focus.

Text message conversation expressing disbelief over a boss blocking a woman’s Tenerife vacation due to concerns about focus.

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