Seeing more empty office chairs this flu season? Flu cases are quickly increasing across the country, both of seasonal flu and swine flu, with further increases expected in the weeks ahead. So as the boss, if you’re not home sick with the flu too, you may be stuck managing a skeleton crew of healthy employees. This in itself is challenging, and may have you wanting to challenge your employees who take sick days. So now is a good time to double-check what information bosses are allowed to ask their employees who call in sick.

As the boss, you may be tempted to ask for details of the employee’s illness, even if only out of concern . . . although it might be better to say “I hope you feel better soon” and move on. Laws like HIPAA, FMLA, ADA, and state laws protect some degree of medical privacy, and each has its own list of nuances. And you never know when an employee might misinterpret your concern as suspicion. So beyond a general explanation for the absence—employee is sick, employee has a sick child, or employee is seriously injured—it’s probably best not to go digging. Stick to facts that relate to the job and business necessity, such as asking when an employee expects to return to work.

To prevent abuse of sick leave, you can require a doctor’s note to return to work after an illness. This requirement should be written in the employee handbook and applied consistently, such as when any employee calls out for three consecutive days. The note shouldn’t divulge a diagnosis or any intrusive medical information; it should only say that the employee was evaluated by a doctor and that the employee needs to use sick leave. But use this route with caution. Many employees will feel mistrusted if they have to prove they weren’t abusing sick leave or that they are fit to return to work. And employees with common illnesses, such as a cold or flu, will be forced to see a doctor, when water and bedrest would have done the trick in time.

Even during this challenging flu season, privacy can be the best policy when it comes to sick employees. The fact is, flu season will knock out a portion of your workforce every October to May, so it’s better to plan ahead to effectively run operations with a reduced crew. Once your bases are covered, you can implement strategies to reduce the spread of germs in the office, and encourage sick employees to stay home—without requiring a detailed explanation!