At my work you’re allowed two 15 minute breaks and one 30 minute lunch break that you clock out for. When I started a few years ago, I never noticed that there’s a group of senior level coworkers that take longer breaks, but once someone mentioned it, it became really apparent. 15 minute breaks were actually 25-35 minute breaks, and half hour lunches were actually 40-50 minutes (they clock back in and go back to lunch.)
Initially I didn’t really care because I didn’t think it really affected me, but one of my bosses heard that I knew and urged me to say something. They said that any work the group in question doesn’t finish trickles down to other people, especially because the group works in the early morning and other people work as late as 11pm. (Side note: this boss doesn’t work alongside the group, so they don’t feel they can reprimand them.)
So I talked to my other boss, and he talked to the group. That was months ago and nothing changed. But recently when I mentioned it again, he said if it happens one more time, he’d have to get HR and the branch manager involved, and members of the group could potentially get fired.
I don’t want them to be fired, I just wanted them to be held accountable and actually work the time they’re getting paid for. One of my other coworkers who I talked to about it said I shouldn’t have caused a fuss and should stop before anyone gets let go, while another said that they’re just getting what they deserve.
I mean, I dont really understand what youre hoping for here. You will get them fired. Itll be their own fault, but it will still happen.
INFO: Is this effecting you? Are you being assigned more work?
In a way, yes. Anything that they don’t finish is handed down to my team, and anything my team can’t finish is handed down to the 3rd shift. So the more time they spend talking and hanging out means less work they’re doing and more work for later shifts. So yes, I’m expected to work more to cover what they don’t. And because of the nature of our work, all work must be finished by EoD. It doesn’t roll back over to the 1st shift.
And I guess what I’m hoping for is to see if I’m justified in complaining or if I’m being an unnecessary asshole. It feels like I have one more chance to drop it before there are actually consequences.
Ok all I needed, report them! NTA. Thank you for the context, OP
You’re NTA. They know the rules. They’re breaking them. That’s on them, and no one else. YOU are not getting them fired. You are informing management, and letting them make a decision. It could easily be someone else passing along this info. **They are getting themselves fired.**
NTA. Even with warnings they aren’t changing their behavior. Time card fraud is a big no-no.
You could have stayed in your lane but I think your intentions to get team mates to do their work load (so it isn’t passed down unjustly) is of noble intent.
YTA. Stop being a busybody.
Well, I think you have a concern that you feel is valid. But this is a no-win for you or anyone else. If your concern is that others are picking up a little extra work because of the slackers’ longer breaks, what do you think will happen if the slackers get fired? All of their work will be reassigned, not just some of it. I doubt that the organization will speed hire replacements, and even if they did, the replacements would have a reasonable training period that everyone else would have to cover anyway.
I think work life is hard enough to bear without making other people’s lives just as miserable as possible. Focus on your own work life and do what you can to survive it.
NTA, but not a winner either.
I mean, if it isn’t affecting you personally, then I don’t think it’s really your place either. If it is something that their boss is noticing, if it is something that HR is noticing, then they should be responsible for taking care of it.
If it is affecting you and your work, then, yeah, you should tell someone and get that dealt with.
If it isn’t, and you still feel the need to get involved, just talk to the group in question. Tell them people are noticing, you heard it through the grape vine that it’s likely HR would fire over this and they should probably stop.
YTA, mind your business, let your boss say something if there’s something to be said. An office that sweats people over an extra 10 or 20 minutes of conversation a day sounds like a miserable place.
NTA. But you will be made the scapegoat for reporting them unfortunately. Your boss should have noticed that the earlier shift was not completing their work and spoken to the boss of the 1st shift. The earlier shift’s boss should be managing their workers.
NTA. If it’s affecting you in a way that these slackers get their work delegated to someone else, then they’re better fired than stay there + earn their salaries but not contribute in a way they should.
I mostly don’t think you are an AH but I’m not sure you’re doing what’s best to you. I think the bosses are trying to pin any anger from whatever fallout on you. Two managers, one of whom is their supervisor knows about it but they are the ones urging you to do something about it? They should be the one stoping this.
The first manager should have told the second manager directly, and the second manager shouldn’t need you to follow up on it. These bosses/managers are not your friend, you need to be careful.
NTA—because it’s not fair for them to neglect their work (I’m all for over-staying your breaks a bit if you’re still getting all your work done in a day)
But it was crap for the other boss to ask you to snitch on them in the first place—if that boss wanted something done, they should’ve done it themselves.