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UPDATE: Metro officials said in a statement on Wednesday that they received nearly 500 requests for excused absences from work on Friday—“a rate that is many times higher than normal.” The requests came from both bus and rail workers.

The transit agency denied all of the requests, according to the statement, which says Metro expects to offer “full bus and rail service” to riders as scheduled on Friday.

At a press conference on Wednesday, ATU Local 689 representative Wayne Garland said that the union “would never stage an exercise to intentionally harm our riders.” He said that Metro officials were responsible for “tipping off the media” about a possible strike.

Garland called WMATA’s policy to call in sick three days ahead of time “ridiculous” and “another example of their failure to address safety.” But he says union employees did follow that protocol with their requests.

And in response to Metro’s denial of the requests, the union’s president, Jackie Jeter, released a statement on Wednesday questioning if WMATA will “accept the responsibility of refusing a person who is legitimately sick from getting a doctor’s care” or if the transit agency will force employees to “operate vehicles that transport hundreds or possibly thousands of riders while ill.”

On Thursday morning, Metro union employees protested the contract negotiations outside of the agency’s headquarters where a board meeting was being held.

ORIGINAL: Some Metro employees may be planning a “sick out” protest this weekend, according to multiple news outlets.

Metro Spokesperson Richard Jordan said in an emailed statement to DCist that the agency is assigning staffing this weekend “based on an unusually high number of absence requests to ensure the delivery of service to customers.”

Metro officials told supervisors via email on Tuesday that they were required to work 12 hour shifts between Friday and Sunday to accommodate for the planned protest, NBC Washington reports.

The transit agency is currently in contract negotiations with its biggest union, ATU Local 689. A union spokesperson told NBC that the process has “outraged” its members.

But the union’s communications coordinator, David Stephen, told DCist that Metro is responsible for the “sick out” rumors. “We did not do that,” Stephen said, adding that the alleged protest does not concern contract negotiations or a right to strike. Per their contract, Metro employees aren’t allowed to strike.

According to WMATA policy, employees must give a three-day written notice to be excused from work. Stephen said that if any union member has told their supervisors that they will be sick on Friday, they are “adhering to WMATA’s own policy.”

The strike rumors come as Metro plans to shut down multiple stations this weekend for maintenance projects, in addition to other service disruptions.