My boss wants me to lie about his whereabouts when people call. What should I say?

Question

Please give me creative ways to say that my boss is unavailable without lying. Many people know that his office is directly behind me and I can turn my chair and see if he's in the office or not. Oftentimes, he wants me to say that he's not in the office. I don't make a practice of lying and I'm not going to lie for this man just because he wants to avoid people. Which is something he also likes to do a lot of. It's ridiculous.

Answer 1

that is terrible you are in this position

just take the calls and leave the messages on his desk

-he is on a conference call at the moment
-on a business call

Answer 2

He may be testing you. In the short term, you should do what your boss tells you to, even if you think it's wrong. He's the boss, he can do that. As long as it does not violate company policy you are not at fault if he tells you to do it. This will show him you are a dedicated employee. In the near future you can say to him you are not comfortable lying to people and see what he says. He may already have the creative solution your looking for.

You could tell callers, "he's not available right now", and take a message. Then immediately give him the message in his office. That fulfills your obligation without lying. There should be no reason to say he is somewhere else, since they may try to contact him there.

Remember that the reason bosses hire secretaries is to protect themselves. His office is like his own private fortress and you are the guard. Save him from unwanted calls and he will be grateful. It's just a matter of how far your willing to go to accomplish that.

Answer 3

You need to understand that people in authority need to manage their time. Getting called off task several times a day can add hours to a work day plus can cause errors on documents or spreadsheets. Plus taking a call when you don't have a ready answer for the caller can be disasterous. A few things you might say are:
1.He's on another line may I take a message and have him call you when he's done?
2.He's in a meeting right now
3.He's just stepped out for a minute
4.He's with a client
5.He's away from his desk

Answer 4

Remember, this is your boss. He signs your paychecks. If you are not willing, or feel uncomfortable saying that your boss is not available, then perhaps you should find another job which better fits your morals.

And personally, saying that your boss is "not available" is not lying. He may be in his office doing other work which requires him to not be disturbed... which makes him un-available.

Now, if he's saying that he's having lunch with some prospective clients, and he's really having an affair on his wife, then that's a whole 'nother story.

Answer 5

The easiest thing to do is to tell people "I'm sorry (name) can't come to the phone right now, may I take a message?"
or "I'm sorry (name) can't come to the phone right now, is there something I can help you with?"

(the second one is better if you have enough experience and authority to actually be helpful to the caller)

If they ask when he can speak with them, put them on hold and ask him when he will get back to them. Then just relay the message back to the caller.

There is no need to lie for him, but at the same time just because he is in the office doesn't mean that he has to take every call that comes in. People will understand - or they will take their business elsewhere. Either way it doesn't have to be on your shoulders.

I hope that helps.

Answer 6

I find myself in this postion quite often at work & like you I hated it too but now I just say "I'm sorry Mr Whoever is unavailable to take your call right now, may I ask what it's regarding?" When they explain why they are caling I say it out loud & if my boss decides the call is important & gives me the nod I say " oh hold on, he's just finished on the other line I'll transfer you".

Answer 7

He's unable to take calls at this moment. If you don't want to lie this will sound better and help you avoid lying. Also, you should just tell your boss that you are uncomfortable wtih lying for him. So tell your boss that when people call you will say that he is unable to take calls right now and take a message.

Answer 8

Simply say, "I'm sorry--he's unavailable right now. May I take a message, or would you like me to transfer you to his voicemail?" They shouldn't need to know where he is or what he's doing--they should be satisfied with the answer that he's busy. If they persist, keep saying, "I'm sorry, but he's unavailable right now." Eventually they'll get the hint.

Answer 9

Just simply say that he is unavailable. You are not lying. By asking you to tell people he is out of the office, he IS unavailable.

EMT

Answer 10

you can tell people he's on a call and to leave a message for him. or you can say he's stepped out of the office for lunch/smoke break... or if you have the do not disturb button on your phones you can say that he's pressed it and you dont know why but he's asked that everyone goes into voice mail. you can say he's on his cell phone

(i'm just coming up with things i have to say about our boss regularly, cause the vp usually calls after he's already left to go play golf for the day)

Answer 11

Your boss sounds dishonest and kinda of an *** hole to put you in this position. Don't put up with it.

you can tell people he is busy and does not want to be disturbed. make sure you take the messages and keep a copy of it in writing so that you won't be blamed ..you are doing your job...when u start lying about your boss, you are putting yourself in a position you may not be able to get out of. so the wise thing to do is..tell people he is busy and take a message and make sure he has the message.