Hi everyone. I have a final-round interview Thursday at 2:30 in Midtown. I work in a small architecture office in DUMBO, honestly like 12 people, and my boss does the thing where she looks at the clock if I come back from lunch at 1:05. I’m up to my neck in the job search secret, obviously. I can’t work from home. Do people actually call out sick for this? What do you even say if the interview calls your current job to verify employment? I’m nervous I’ll get caught by a LinkedIn update or running into someone on the F. Help.

Ugh, I did this last month and said I had a stomach bug. It was the longest 24 hours of my life because I kept checking my work email from the waiting room and then my boss texted me “feel better!” I wore a full suit on the train and felt like everyone knew. But honestly no one in my office found out. My advice: take the whole day, not a half day. The half-day “doctor appointment” is what makes people ask follow-ups. Do you know if a new employer can actually call your current HR without asking first? I told them not to, but I still don’t know if that works.

Take the whole day. I’ve been on both sides—hiring manager and candidate—and the half-day medical appointment is a tell, especially in a small office. The more specific the excuse, the more it invites questions. A simple “I’m not feeling well and won’t be in” is a complete sentence.

Check your employee handbook before you do anything. If your company is covered by NYC paid safe and sick leave, you may have protected time; in practice, many small offices only ask for a doctor’s note if you’re out multiple days. One sick day usually doesn’t require documentation, but do not mention an interview to a coworker. I once saw a perfectly fine candidate sink himself because he told the receptionist he was “so busy at his current job” and she knew his current boss socially from a Brooklyn networking group. It’s a small town.

For the employment check: most background checks do not call your current employer until after an offer, and reputable firms ask permission before contacting current supervisors. When you fill out the form, mark “do not contact” for your current employer. That is normal and they see it every day.

Finally, do not update LinkedIn, do not post a photo from Midtown, and give yourself at least 45 minutes of walking time between the interview and the nearest subway. You’ll be more convincing if you’re not out of breath when your boss calls about a file.

Semi-related dumb question: if they ask for a reference from a current manager, are you supposed to just tell your boss you’re leaving before you get an offer? I’m in a similar situation in a dental office in Bay Ridge. I went on one interview and they wanted my supervisor’s phone number on the application. I used a coworker and said he was the office manager, but I’m terrified someone will call and he won’t know what to say. Is that overthinking? Also how does anyone do a second interview when the first was during lunch? I only have 30 minutes.

Unpopular opinion but maybe don’t lie. I know the comments say take a sick day, but if the job is this strict about a long lunch, do you really want to start a new role by sneaking around? I’ve held jobs in small NYC offices and I know it feels impossible, but using a personal day or asking for a late start can sometimes be safer than getting caught in a sick-day lie. The risk isn’t the sick day itself—it’s the story after. If you get the offer, your current boss may get a call two weeks later for a reference and put two and two together. I’d rather say I have an appointment and work late than perform food poisoning for 24 hours. But I get that not everyone has that kind of boss. Just consider whether the secret job search is making the job worse than it already is.

I just did this from a restaurant on Staten Island and swapped a shift instead of calling out. Different than an office though because nobody pays attention to lunch. Do office people really get asked for doctor’s notes for one day? My old retail job did that, but only because people called out for beach days. Also, if you have to put “do not contact current employer,” does the recruiter think you’re hiding something? I put that on an application once and never heard back. Maybe I’m overthinking it. Good luck OP, hope you get the Midtown job.