would you leave "early" on your first day of a new job?

[happydutchmummy]

We had a new colleague start today and I did her induction and new starter thing this morning. I wasn't the one who'd interviewed her, but I spoke to her on the phone when she accepted the job. Both times she asked what her set working hours would be and both times I explained that we operate a flexible working policy in our office, as long as she is there during core hours, she can choose to work around them as she wishes (e.g. come in early and leave early, or start at 9 but stay till later)

She approached me at ten to four to ask if it would be on for her to leave at 4:00 today as she had wanted to come in at 8:00 but was told she couldn't as I don't start til 8:30 and I was settling her in. So basically she wanted to leave half an hour early as she felt she could have started work earlier but was delayed by my start time! I told her she was free to leave whatever time she wanted, but she would have to make up the extra half hour of work later in the week as she'd not worked her full hours for today.

Aibu to find this a bit odd? During my first weeks in the office I was eager to be seen as keen and enthusiastic and I wouldn't have dreamt of leaving early, especially not on day 1! Or is her attitude totally acceptable as we do work flexible hours...

I wouldn't do it. True, she may have had her reasons. But it doesn't really make a great impression.

I'm surprised at everyone's reaction to this. It's only 30 mins, she could easily make this up another tim and would probably be more productive doing the extra 30 mins later in the week than on her first day when she probably didn't have much to do.

I started a new job recently and was told to come in for 9.30 on the first day. My boss and most people in the department left by 4.30 as they were in much earlier. It would have been very odd to be left on my own in the office for an hour at the enf of my first day when I didn't have much to do. I did offer to stay but they all laughed and said everyone was allowed to slope off early on their first day. I did make up the time later in the week. Perhaps the last place she worked was like mine? At least give her a week before you judge her though.

Nobody likes a clock watcher as an employee or a colleauge. In my experience these people are experts at remembering the few times they had to work late but are strangely silent when it comes to those times when they had a long lunch, arrived late or left early.

It's completely normal to leave early on your first day. It's mentally exhausting being in a new environment. I always send new starters home at 4ish. What would she have been doing between 4-430 i? Did she have any actual work to do? If not then yadbu.

Being sent home early and asking to go home early on your first day are completely different.

Wishihadabs

Are being serious? Your post sounds like you are describing a childs first day at 'big school'.

Assuming we are talking about an adult starting a new job there is plenty to do on your first day, there will I assume be a few H&S inductions, getting briefed on your new role and functions, familarising yourself on any projects that you are to be involved in, setting up your email and phone, getting to grips with their IT systems, and a big event will be meeting your new team or work colleagues, it’s these people you need to focus your energy on as its your relationships with them that are going to determine your early career prospects, and it’s odds-on that your manager will be asking these people what they think of you. Buggering off early on your first day is not really going to impress anyone, even if you are not that busy take the initiative and offer to help one of your colleagues, they will probably politely decline but they will certainly remember you being positive and taking the initiative. Day one is all about impressions and 'getting stuck in'.

Good point weasel but my point still stands it's fairly common place to have an early finish and therefore not unreasonable to plan for that. I bet it was a last resort (having not been told to go) that made her ask.

yes absolutely serious and quite frankly what you describe would not take up 8 hours in any but the most inefficient organisation.

Maybe in the future don't put people on flexi-time until they've completed their 3 months probation & have proved their interest in the job.

Then, once they know what they're doing, they can work whatever hours suit.

I do think it's unreasonable to expect to swan in & out when it's pretty obvious you're going to need a bit of training/mentoring for the first few days or so...

Trouble is, no clear message was given either way so you're both BU....

Did she at the idea of making up the time ? Think perhaps whoever confirmed her appointment should have stipulated that she should arrive at 8.30 and could leave at 4.30 on first day if that was your intention. Often the first few days can seem relatively unproductive to the newbie. As long as she doesn't make a habit of it and makes up the time I think you'll have to let it go .Has she been working recently or is she back after a period off ?

I've never been sent home early in the first day. And the couple of times I have had friends being sent home early, they were extremely discouraged and wondered if they made a bad decision accepting the job.

It makes the company look disorganised and gives a negative impression if they can't find enough work for you on day 1 and send you home early.

This is a communication issue. You should have made it clear that her hours for the first day were in fact fixed.

So OP was there anything she could have usefully done between 4 and 430 ? I think this is the crux of it. If not then why on earth would you want her to stay ?

I would be so upset as the employee to think people were thinking like this about me....

I would have expected to have been told the hours I had to work on the first day if I was not allowed to take advantage of the Flexi outside core hours aspect. You have told her that she can work flexible hours, but then don't actually want to let her do that?

From day 1? So you are changing her terms and conditions - that she had planned the rest of her life around - on day 1? Makes her wonder if you are going to arbitrarily set hours any other time, is she able to do the flexi hours she wants or not? Just when it suits you? Has she taken the job on the whole premise of being able to leave at 4 and then being told "not really - only joking"...

Flexi hours are usually totalled over a week or month, not daily... allows for - you know... flexibility... (outside of any stipulated core hours...)

Have worked in 3 separate flexi hours jobs and flexi has been allowed whenever - including first day, and usually totalled over the month....

OP ignore the peopleon this thread saying that you're a jobs worth and bad manager. There is always a contingent of mgmt haters on mn who turn things around in favour of the employee eg 'you are Not fair, the employee must have had childcare issues...'

This is not about how clear you were with terms - which it sounds like you are - but the employees attitude. Everyone should try to go the distance on the first day not try to renegotiate terms for flexi. She sounds young and inexperienced.

A few people here expecting to be spoon fed instructions, if you are not sure, you ask what the deal is. If it were me I would probably would have stuck around until most people started to finish for the day. Scurrying off home at the earliest opportunity on your first day just looks a bit shit to be honest.

Jesus, people.

She left a whole 30 minutes early. On her first day, when you're normally neither use nor ornament anyway, it's about meeting colleagues and settling in.

What was she supposed to accomplish in those thirty minutes, find the cure for cancer? Have a bit of perspective.

Those of you crying fire the bitch, do you always come and leave bang on time?
Do you never work a minute more or less than your contracted hours?
Do you never stay half an hour more to finish something at the end of the day?
Are you also going to count and document all the unpaid minutes she's going to work for you in overtime? Like, when you give her something "urgent" five minutes before her lunchtime or at 4.50pm on a Friday, and expect her to do it?

Yes, I agree it paints a worse picture of the employer than the employee.

I agree OP, it shows a poor attitude. IME people are on their best behaviour during their first days on the job do it doesn't bode well.

Has she asked about sick pay yet?

I once hired someone on a probation period, her hours were 9-5.30pm, same as everyone else in the office. Two days after she started, she asked if she could change her hours to start at 10.30am because she wanted to go to a yoga class... it didn't exactly give a good impression. For that and other piss-takey reasons, we decided not to give her a job at the end of her probation, and she tried to take us to a tribunal for constructive dismissal! I'd be wary if I were you.

Bad attitude. I wouldn't dream of asking to leave early in that situation, and I certainly wouldn't try to make a colleague feel that their work hours had impacted on mine.

IME she can work whatever hours she likes once she 'has her feet under the table', but first days at work are about making a good impression and seeming willing and enthusiastic. If you did have a genuine reason for needing to leave early you should warn the new employer ahead of time. Or make arrangements so that you don't have to leave early just on your first day.

Can we have an update today and then another in a month please? I agree it raises an eyebrow about her commitment and motivation, but wait and see.

Making a good impression cuts both ways.

There will come a time when there's a genuine crisis/urgency/deadline and you'll need this employee to do a bit more than she's contractually required to do. Provided you're paying her for her skills and knowledge and not to keep her seat warm with her bum between certain hours of the day.

I've had previous employers ask me to start at 7.00am instead of the usual 9.00am, repeatedly. I've had to stay late to finish stuff (sometimes as late as missing the last train home). I've been asked to work bank holidays. None of which was part of the initial deal I signed up for. I agreed to do them because I knew my bosses wouldn't make a fuss of my leaving 30 minutes early on slow days, or they'd let me work from home on occasion, and so on. If they had had the kind of attitude most of you displayed in this conversation, I wouldn't have been so eager to help.