to think that I should be able to eat at work?

[GlassyPinkP]

I work in an office, am not public facing, and sit behind a computer all day. 6 months pregnant and feel hungry throughout the day, but heartburn means I can't eat big meals. I've been eating at my desk (not huge or smelly meals, usually a bowl of cereal, sandwich, fruit etc) throughout the day. It doesn't impact on my work and it makes me feel a whole heap less hungry throughout the day compared to when I eat a tiny breakfast and a tiny lunch in between!

My manager has raised with me that one of my colleagues is not happy that I am eating a lot at my desk (I'm within my calories, it's not a huge amount it's just more spread out). Apparently I should go in to the kitchen area and eat out there. Everyone eats their lunch at their desks but their screens are turned off so it's an official lunch break.

AIBU to think I should be allowed to have a 30 min lunch break to eat my sandwiches and if I want to eat fruit or the odd bowl of cereal 2/3 times a day this shouldn't be an issue?

I'm finding pregnancy really hard and have nausea constantly as well as heartburn and gallbladder problems. Food helps! I don't want to be banished to standing in the kitchen every time I want to eat an orange...

Opinions?

Bloody hell, @tinkerbellvspredator, don't go ruining @RoseWhiteTips' unsubstantiated claim as to the Treasury's superior eating-at-desk policy!

I work for a prestige car company and we can eat at our desks
Rules are nothing smelly and no hot food. Stuff like cups of tea, fruit, sweets, biscuits/crackers etc all acceptable

Excuse me @NoWordForFluffy and @tinkerbellvspredator but it's actually The Treasury, both with capital Ts? Bit of respect wouldn't go amiss. Sheesh

Oops.

Eating at your desk is clearly only done in small fry places

Nope. I've worked at 4 NHS Trusts, with up to 5000 employees each. My current "kitchen" is, no word of a lie, a converted cupboard. There is room for a counter, a fridge underneath, a sink and a kettle. To have enough room to make tea, the microwave and toaster are kept in the main office. Yesterday my colleague microwaved a slimming world curry and everyone was saying how good it smelled.

Pretty much all previous places I've worked at have been the same. Some places had kitchen facilities in the main office. Nowhere to sit. Apart from when I worked retail, every job I've had you had to eat at your desk.

So, better not use the NHS SunShades - we're all uncouth yobbos in the back offices.

Why are people still responding to SunShades as if anything she says is true?

Stop feeding it.

But what shall I do with all of these billy goats?

Why does she need special "adjustments" because she is pregnant? Presumably, she is not the first person to be pregnant. And, no, she doesn't have to eat regularly. A small mid-morning snack should be enough. I have been pregnant and had many colleagues who are pregnant and never seen the treated differently.

I would say, however, the fact that you eat lunch at your desk makes it a bit strange they would make a fuss about eating at other times. It's a bit dictatorial.

Are you OP's doctor cherish? As someone who had gallbladder issues and now acid reflux after it was removed I sympathise with the OP. It causes me enough problems and I'm not even pregnant!

Why should your colleagues tolerate the sight, sound and smell of you eating? YABU.

They don’t do that at The Treasury, for instance. They hot desk too. How on earth do constant grazers and slipper wearers manage?

Perfectly easily. You bring your snacks in with you daily or leave them with your slippers in the allocated locker or locking drawer from tidying all your papers and equipment into, which get taken out every morning.

Easy to see you don't have much imagination, particularly as you seem to consider large swathes of government and the military small fry.

Why should your colleagues tolerate the sight, sound and smell of you eating? YABU.

They all 'tolerate' each other eating at the moment: the OP says 'Everyone eats their lunch at their desks'.

So your point...?

'Why should your colleagues tolerate the sight, sound and smell of you eating? YABU.'
They all 'tolerate' each other eating at the moment: the OP says. 'Everyone eats their lunch at their desks'.
So your point...?

Agree with Ethyl
Eating at desks in the first place is bad enough but constant grazing would drive me mad.

Eating at desks in the first place is bad enough but constant grazing would drive me mad.

You'd love it here then, I've just been in a meeting with two directors and several other members of staff and we were eating chocolate Hobnobs while we were talking!

Eating at desks in the first place is bad enough

OK, but that's irrelevant to the OP, isn't it? They DO all eat at their desks.

Do you work in a nursery @PinkSparklyPussyCat ?

That's the only kind of organisation I could imagine being so unprofessional and uncouth.

YANBU - youre pregnant ffs!! its bloody hard and wrecks havoc with your eating routine, id agree with the complainant if you werent pregnant, but if someone had diabetes and had to eat a chocolate bar to keep themselves feeling ok then would that be out of order for them to do? erm NO??

sounds like a complete arse tbh, bring on maternity leave i say

Do you work in a nursery @PinkSparklyPussyCat?

No, I work for a large company with normal managers who treat their staff like human beings unlike your company @SunShades.

Can you believe it, when the hospital phone to say my Mum was dying they had no problem with me leaving immediately? I actually told my boss I was going rather than asking him and he told me to do what I had to do. I respect people like that.

@PinkSparklyPussyCat hilarious how some people believe we must work like corporate robots... where is the compassion these days? if someone is pregnant and snacking makes them feel better, then let them snack! ive left companies because of their complete lack of basic human compassion. good on your boss reacting the way he did - he clearly isnt one of these corporate robots who put their job before their health, unlike some others on this thread!

wreaks havoc

You must all be pretty rotund after that constant munching.

Wait. The vast quantity of snacks are close to your slippers in your locker. Hope none of the packets are unopened or the food might get a bit contaminated. 🤢

Easy to see you don't have much imagination, particularly as you seem to consider large swathes of government and the military small fry.

🤣

...packets are OPENED

One rather super, substantially high earning and very famous games co regularly do a trolley service to their employees desks at crunch time (no pun intended).

I used to bloody love going there for meetings

Didn't seem to affect their output one iota. Because you know. Normal people.