Where is that written?

If I am battling a bad sinus headache and shouldn’t be up front flying, does that mean I am also unable to sit in the back as a passenger on a short flight to go visit my aging mother? If that’s written in the contract, fine. If it’s not - good luck.

Disciplinary action or termination by the company for using a discretionary sick call would open up one hell of a lawsuit risk, IMO, and not the kind that gets settled out of court and nobody talks about.

For what it’s worth, I am in complete agreement that pilots should not abuse the system or lie to their company about a sickness. However, that doesn’t mean the company should be allowed to discipline (or even ask questions) their employees over discretionary sick calls.