Why is new boss being such a knob?

In a previous role, my contract just said I had to work 37.5 hours per week. There was nothing about start / finish times or lunch breaks at all.

If I wanted to, I could take three hours for lunch on a Monday, then no break on a Tuesday, and make up the extra time on the Thursday.

He truly is a knob. But the answer to the question of why is that he doesn't like remote teams... Which begs the question why did he take the job? Surely he was informed at interview that everyone is spread out without sufficient office space to work from it. And how does someone senior not know that you can't alter someone's contract from remote to in-office without some serious HR loopholes.

Thing is, in many jobs that measure output in productivity rather than presence, you absolutely can take a 3 hour lunch break. It works fine, because ultimately if you don't produce what you said you were going to produce you get fired. People are good at managing their workloads/hours and people are especially productive if they are happy and relaxed, so if that means a 3 hour lunchbreak every so often, so be it. I couldn't give a shit what hours my team work, because when I need them - they are there. They are meeting their goals (and more than). We all just... do our jobs, alongside living our lives. Sometimes means a few late nights, sometimes means a wee friday afternoon skive.

I realise some PPs don’t believe there are WFH jobs with this degree of flexibility.

There really are - I had several and I was line managed by a variety of personalities. Some were excellent people motivators who were a joy to work for as they were also able to be appropriately hands off but available when required. Sadly a few couldn’t cope with remote teams with autonomy over their diaries and were awful micro managers who sucked all the joy out of working life.

@Buggeroffboss - looks like you’ve been landed with the latter sort. You have my sympathies.

How can he know if you’ve refilled a mug from a flask? Or used a thermal mug that’s kept it hot since your last permitted tea break?
I fail to see how on earth he can mandate what you do during unpaid breaks including laundry or errands. Or force people out of remote working from far flung locations with no desk provisions.
It sounds like he’s read up on quick wins to make an immediate impact and is logging data to present to his superiors. Without checking whether his edicts would actually improve productivity.
No surprise to hear people are now working to rule. You could have some real fun with that as suggested upthread.

😆
I have from the outset
catch up

He can’t dictate your lunch break. That is your time to do what you wish, whether that is to go for a walk/run, go to Mass or have a smoke in the garden. I’d take it up with HR. Are any of you unionised? It is against the law to dictate how people take their breaks and they do not have to be taken on work premises. Check your contracts, too and work to rule. They will find you are not nearly as productive as a team as you once were.

I would put a drink in a vase and pop in some artificial flowers. Then when he starts a meeting, remove said flowers from the vase and drink from that.
When he complains say there's no rules about drinking from a vase.

RTFT

I'd line up bottles & glasses of booze in full view - he hasn't banned alcohol .
And try to get colleagues to do the same.

If you were in the office you would be having random cups of tea when you felt like it, and going where you wanted at lunch.

What if you have an Ember mug? What if you have a travel mug or thermos flask? Kettle on your desk?

Years ago I made friends with a lady on my train to work who worked for a government department. Her boss worked in a different office so she had to tell her when she'd arrived and when she was planning to leave!

So it's not just WFH people who get this insane micromanagement, either.

This is the mug I use for my naughty cuppa when on Teams. It might work for OP and her team when making the illicit cup of tea.

This. Last week I was on a call in the afternoon and as my DH was WFH he brought me a cup of tea. Do you have to turn the computer round to show your tea-maker?

You are the second most senior person in this team and was the acting head until he was appointed.. and you don’t know the company policy??

You need to get together and write and sign a letter that tells him you are very unhappy with his management style or nominate three of the 40 to soeak with him to warn him before you have a vote of no confidence. Yiur team will lose goodwill and good staff if they dont take action.

How can he tell you you can't run errands in your lunch-hour? If you were in the office you'd be allowed out at lunchtime. If he is calling you immediately after your lunch hour, schedule something else in your diary, even if it's quiet work for you.

And I wouldn't have have anyone telling me, a grown adult, when I can and can't have a cup of tea, either. You're an adult employee not a school pupil. Has he come from a school by any chance OP?

The employee is required to work diligently and faithfully and devoted his/her full time and attention the duties of his/ her role during his/her working hours"
Core hours are set as 10-12 daily, unless department operational requirements are different as set out in X" (x doesn't apply to my job role/ operational department).
"The employee will from time to time be expected to work outside of the core hours. Where reasonably practicable, advanced notice will of this will be provided"+*
+"It may on occasion be necessary for the employee to work in excess of 48 hours in a seven day period"*

where does this indicate that taking a 3 hour lunch break without informing your manager is within the contract?

He can’t dictate what you do in your presumably unpaid lunch hour!

Sounds like a complete dick.

Fingers crossed he doesn’t make it through probation!

What if your partner makes and delivers tea. We take turns. Are you alllowed to drink it then? If you don't have a wfh partner invent one!

The tea time thing I can sort of get. We all know people who on their 15 minute long or whatever tea break spend ten minutes gossiping while it’s brewing and THEN start their break which is obviously taking the piss. Having said that, in my workplace people aren’t confined to tea breaks for drinking tea! They can make tea whenever they like and have it while they work, including meetings. This guy is obviously a massive micromanager. And yeah probably hates wfh.
The rest of it is rubbish. He can’t control what you do on lunch as long as you are back and ready work when you are supposed to be.
Bat back to HR whatever needs to be batted back. And hope that he might settle down once he realises this constant lack of trust and micromanaging is actually exhausting!

Some people seem a bit skeptical of this type of contract - I (and everyone else in my business) work on a very similar contract - 35 hours a week, core hours of 10-2 and can work the rest of the hours however I like. I try to forecast my working hours for the week ahead in my diary so my team can see when I am available but that’s it.

I'd be putting my non cup of tea in a mug with a cryptic message on, every single time.

Do you know if he’s ever managed before?