Polite Japanese at Work

How to call in sick in Japanese (with a message you can copy)

It's 7:40 a.m., you have a fever, and work starts at 9:00. Here is what to send your Japanese boss — and what not to.

The short answer Contact your direct boss, before work starts, using the channel your team expects (some teams require a phone call). Say what happened, for how long, and what happens to today's work, then apologize once.

The formula

  1. Greeting + your name — おはようございます。〇〇です。 Inside your company, use お疲れさまです (otsukaresama desu, the everyday greeting between coworkers) or おはようございます ("good morning"). お世話になっております (osewa ni natte orimasu) is for people outside the company.
  2. Reason + request — keep it short. 体調不良のため (taichō furyō no tame, "because I'm not feeling well") is enough.
  3. How long — today only? until when?
  4. Impact on work — meetings, deadlines, who is covering.
  5. One apology + closing — ご迷惑をおかけして申し訳ありません。よろしくお願いいたします。 ("Sorry for the trouble. Thank you.")

A message you can copy (chat)

Sick day — Slack / Teams / LINE WORKS
〇〇さん
おはようございます。〇〇です。
発熱のため、本日はお休みをいただけますでしょうか。
本日10時の定例は、△△さんに代理での参加をお願いしております。
体調が戻り次第、メッセージを確認いたします。
ご迷惑をおかけして申し訳ありません。よろしくお願いいたします。

Good morning, this is 〇〇. I have a fever — may I take today off?

I've asked △△ to attend today's 10:00 regular meeting in my place.

I'll check messages once I feel better. Sorry for the trouble, and thank you.

Replace 〇〇 with your boss's name and your own name, and △△ with your coworker's name. If nobody is covering for you, delete that line.

Before you send: 3 checks

  1. Is chat OK on your team? Your company's work rules (就業規則, shūgyō kisoku) or your team may want a phone call for same-day absences. If you're not sure, ask a coworker once and remember it.
  2. Is it before the start time? Early and short beats late and perfect.
  3. Did you say when you'll contact them next? After the doctor, tomorrow morning, etc.

Two common mistakes

✗ 休みます。 (yasumimasu, "I'm taking the day off.") — grammatically fine, but it sounds like an announcement, not a request.
✓ お休みをいただけますでしょうか。 (oyasumi o itadakemasu deshō ka, "May I take the day off?")

✗ Long descriptions of symptoms. Your boss doesn't need them.
✓ 体調不良のため or 発熱のため (hatsunetsu no tame, "because I have a fever") — short and normal.

Want the full set? The PDF guide Calling in Sick, Running Late & Taking Time Off has 6 templates — the chat message above, plus a sick-day email, running late because of a train delay, asking for paid leave, coming back after an absence, and a phone script with romaji — plus a checklist and a quick-reference table.
Available on Gumroad soon.

Every workplace is different. When your company's rules or your boss's instructions differ from this guide, follow them.