Colleague taking the piss….

I think this is taking the piss. You need to let your line manager know what’s going on. It’s not ok that others are carrying a heavier workload because she is taking the piss. I have kids and a senior job but I don’t behave like that, it’s disgusting. And actually it is fraud, you are receiving pay for hours you don’t work. In some companies that’s gross misconduct.

Good Advice from @Starfish75 … your colleague has exercised her right to the modern day … Work/Life Balance - which has accelerated since the lockdown and furlough - sure employers are only interested in the team getting the work done - but do you need to revisit your own work/life balance - if you’re not happy at your job, put it in writing to your employer but start looking for another job, if you get one and your employer values your work contribution, chances are they’ll sit up and listen - but if there’s no need to restructure your work time; i.e. you don’t have young children - stop the side-tracking and get on with your own work - tough love - too many people waste their emotions bickering at work - don’t like it, get another job - LEAVE - otherwise get on with it!

For goodness sake look to your own work and stop being so interested in hers.

I would just focus on doing your job in your allocated hours and not burn yourself out or get stressed doing any more especially if you are not getting paid overtime for it or it’s not being recognised.

You can not change other people but you can change yourself. Find other things to do that make your life better, study, exercise, cook healthy meals etc things that benefit you in your time.

Keep work and personal time separate. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have kids or that you you have more time to work because you don’t have kids, your personal time is precious. Don’t think about what others aren’t doing, just think about what you are doing.

I have flexible working and do work around school times and nursery but I also log in every night after the kids have gone to bed to make up the time. Not everyone cares at the end of the day.

I can’t actually believe the negativity to the OP about this. You must’ve never had the bad luck to work with a shirker! I’ve got one now, problem is she’s the manager! Good luck OP, get it sorted or you’ll be dragged down x

Good luck OP. Definitely raise it with your manager - it’s not sustainable for the rest of a team to carry one skiver (mum or not) because they feel guilty for the service users. Trust me, I know - I’m currently on mandatory reduced hours due to burnout from doing exactly that. Not a great result for anyone but my manager ignored my requests to sort it out, so. I hope your manager is more robust!

Are you sure she is paid same hours as you?

I work just a few hours a week, but because I'm around a lot, people assume I'm employed 30 or more hours. I'm often in at 10am (the people I supervise are in at 8), and I leave at 2. I often have kids in the background (because I'm working during non-work hours!!)

In reality I do twice the hours I'm paid for - but if people don't ask me the hours I'm.paid for, and assume I'm full time or nearly full time then they'd think I'm a slacker.

If it bothers you so much, why don't you ask her if she's full time? If she says yes, you could then just be explicit with how you feel - and ask her how come she gets to do less than you. That way you will not be being two faced, and she may also then tell you if she has specific flexible working arrangements that you don't know about

But it is my business because when she’s being paid to work but not working, it prohibits her from taking on her fair share of the workload, this is impacting on me as my workload is higher.

I can actually respect this, however, you're allowing it to happen. If your workload is too high, that's a conversation for your line manager. If, for example, you're a HV or something similar and there are X amount of patients that need to be seen, everyone needs to be allocated the same amount of patients. And if she decides to do childcare in her working hours then that's up to her, she'll have to catch up in her own time. It's not up to you to decide WHEN she works, that's up to her and her manager to agree, but you do have a responsibility to make sure that she isn't impacting your workload. So that's the issue you need to confront with your manager, not about what hours she does. Make sure she gets allocated her fair share of the work and then she can decide when to do it.

I'm having to laugh at some of the replies on here because, come on, we should all by sympathetic to the poor working mum who's not actually working a full day because it's all too hard? Yes, it's hard, OP is most likely a mum too who's also juggling childcare but is still managing to do her job properly.

This woman should either sort out her childcare issues, or take a reduced hours contract. Both of these obviously cost money though, which is the crux of the matter. She's effectively chosen the reduced hours and no childcare costs, but has kept her income unchanged by stealth.

OP's not being a martyr, she's just fulfilling her employment contract (and then some - which isn't being a martyr, it's just being professional), rather than taking the piss and expecting her teammates to pick up her slack!

Realistically OP, if your line manager isn't aware of the travelling to/from work during work time, this is the bit you really have to bring up with them. If you don't want to get too involved, have a conversation in private and make it clear that you don't want it to get out that it has come from you. Tell them that it's making a lot of the team very dissatisfied with their own jobs when they can see someone being paid the same as them for doing much less work.

If one of my staff came to me to tell me I'm paying a member of staff for 7.5 hours a day, but they're only working 6, I'd be pissed off. Just because the work's being done, doesn't mean you should alienate a whole team, for the sake of one (poor) employee.

If they don't resolve it, the rest of the team will all leave.

YANBU and you definitely need to raise it with your line manager.

Lots of people where I work do have flexible working arrangements to fit around childcare, but they still have to get their work done and put in their contracted hours. There are people in my team who start at 10 so they can do a school run before work, or stop work at 3 to look after kids and then do a couple of hours in the evening from 6-8 or something. But they are still putting in the hours, getting their work done and not expecting anyone else to pick up the slack. It's clearly unfair to have two people doing the same role on the same salary and have one of them doing half the hours and half the work, regardless of the reason for that. She either needs to reduce her hours and accept the drop in salary or make proper childcare arrangements.

Stop getting the work done and let them know why it isn't getting done. You keep picking up the slack and making it look like it's working.

@quietatfirst children only need us to 'raise' them for a short number of years out of their total life. I think they need example too.

I don't want to raise the Ikea customers of the future but I don't want to give as little as possible 'if I ever need to work'. I appreciate the work people do for me - the teachers in teaching my children right now, the people who will cook and clean for me (meeting a friend later for lunch). I am part of society. I benefit from people's work and I contribute with my own.
Have a look at Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

No you are not unreasonable

This lady is using her children as an excuse for an easier work life.

Not cool

How do you know in the situation that you don’t have shirker colleague doing 80% and OP doing 120% to achieve this? Wouldn’t you care?

My situation is slightly different to the OP's in that the members of my team all do slightly different things so I would know fairly quickly if one was taking the piss. I have had that happen a couple of times and dealt with it during those persons 1:1s.
Yes, I care. I'm the single person who got shat on for years by parents who had to have Christmas off or cover their work because they had to leave work on time, but my time was considered lesser than. I'm very conscious of unfairness at work and the resentment that can foster because I am still resentful years later about how I was treated as lesser than and my time less important than that of parents on the team. So I try - and so far it is working - to give flexibility to all my team regardless of their circumstances at home. I've needed flexibility too as I've got a dog with complicated medical conditions and during covid I was having meetings in vets car parks!

Very interesting thread OP - and YANBU 100%

How toxic.
I'm public sector and I think you have a manager problem.

I find the argument that 'they're getting their work done, hours don't matter', offensive. In the public sector, a nurse, a teacher, a police man, health care worker - hours DO matter. It can be hard to measure our work - you can spend an hour on one phone call and 5 minutes on another. But if you are regularly not doing your hours by a significant amount, you are not doing your job.

@donquixotedelamancha has a good plan. Clearly this colleague doen't give a f*ck about her colleagues or service users and you need to reciprocate the feeling (Back to her)
She is thieving a wage for work that she is not doing and poisoning the atmosphere for those of you working. Should she be able to perform at interview, she could very well be promoted.
Your manager also is not doing their job - a toxic atmosphere of resentment is building up, a staff member is not meeting KPIs. People will quit, either 'quietly' or openly if this persists.

@NotagainTuesday similar childcare demands here - but I took the Summer off unpaid.

We weren't born to work, we were born to experience life for a very brief time and then die.
We were given time for ourselves not to be forced by society to sell our precious time so we can earn the living we were already freely given.

And then to be shamed by society if you're not working hard enough for someone who's bought you to make them money.
Nah I was born to live not work and raising children is natural so it's always a priority over a fucked up slave system.
Minimum wage = minimum effort and that's exactly what they should get.
If I ever have to work I will go in reluctantly not a minute before time and leave as early as possible after doing as little as I can. Why? Because I don't want to be there.

This.

I split the school run with dh. I drop the kids at 8 so that means that depending which office I’m heading to I arrive at just before 9 or 9.30 and sometimes have to leave at 3.30pm. I try and do this on my wfh days (when I start at 8.15 and finish at 6 with breaks only to drop/pick up the kids) but sometimes can’t manage that.

My boss is fine with the above and knows exactly what I contribute, and to be honest I don’t really care what anyone else thinks. I may not always be around for 8am meetings - although those are few and far between, most are scheduled for 10am to allow everyone time to get in which works fine with my schedule - but I will work until I’m done. The same can’t be said for many of those who make comments about me being a part-timer.

There’s also a big difference between “quiet quitting” which is doing the bare minimum you’re paid for and after you’ve done that, prioritising your life over your work and working 10 hours less than you’re paid for and saying it’s because you’re prioritising your life.

I agree - you can spot the slackers and those with a poor work ethic on this thread.

Just do the job you are paid to do or leave - I have no time for people who don’t pull their weight.

You won't get much joy here OP. On MN it's fine to take the piss at work, and people will tell you to mind your own business. That said, if you'd posted saying "isn't it great, I work far fewer hours than I'm meant to and the manager hasn't noticed" you'd be ripped apart. Strange MN thing.
Anyway, back in the real world, I'd be bloody livid in your situation.
Do your other colleagues feel the same?
I would ask your manager if it was OK for you to travel in work time too. And ask if you can reduce your workload as you now want to leave early but be paid the same.

They are likely slackers too. 😂

I'd raise it with your manager that you're struggling with your workload and ask if there is anyone you can move some to. They can then check diaries and see she has free time. Move it to her then. Job done.

If your manager won't do that for no good reason, just start doing the same as her. No one cares clearly.

You have my sympathies OP. I started a thread a few years ago about a colleague doing the same sort of things and got the same responses about how it's none of your business and they might have flexible working, etc. I was apparently in the wrong for being bothered by it. Speak to your manager but it's unlikely to make a difference.
I can say it now, as I've left the profession, but we were social workers. Her laziness and dishonesty about her working hours directly impacted vulnerable people.
You'll come across lazy and entitled people in every sector. Unfortunately.