Office ‘shared’ food. Would you say anything?

[KittyVonCatsworth]

We’re a really small team, 10 of us in the office. There’s a table where we all often bring treats in biscuits, fruit, cheese etc for us to help ourselves. However, there’s always the same guy that just trounces the food! He does occasionally bring in a packet of biscuits but e.g I bought in a packet of ginger cookies, teacakes and some chocolate bars. About 30 snacks/treats in total which could’ve easily lasted 2/3 days but he just demolished them! The same with the fruit today; instead of one satsuma he’s had 5! As well as grapes and bananas and 3 mince pies. All before lunchtime.

I know it seems a bit of a non issue but I just find it greedy and it really puts me off bringing in treats for the rest of the team. I’m normally very abrupt and direct but I don’t want to embarrass him or the rest of the team or come across as mean. It’s been mentioned by others in the team too.

Would you say anything and if so, how would you say ‘stop being a woofer’ in a nice way!

Yes, he sounds like a selfish pig and I don't see why your manager can't say something - isn't that why managers get paid more, to actually manage things? If he won't I'd just stop bringing stuff, or keep at your desk and offer it to the others (except him).

I want a mince pie now.

I hope he's left one for me

Everyone start singing "Who ate all the pies..."

Some people are just oblivious, aren't they? They think nobody notices what a CF they're being.

If you can’t address it directly (the best way- john have you eaten half the biscuits already? Leave some for everyone else) is change it to a weekly rota and it will be very obvious how fast it goes and who eats it. If it has all run out by Monday afternoon and one person supplied it will be easy to address it.
But if you and your boss have wider issues with this guy perhaps you should also be looking at performance warning.

I dont see how its a problem. We also bring in shared treats and i dont keep tabs on who eats what

Well presumably it’s a problem because he’s scoffing almost everything that others provide without contributing himself. Would you really not care if you brought in say a Victoria sponge and a colleague cut it into six portions and pigged the lot before anyone else had a chance? Repeatedly.

Can you ask him if he realises he's doing it, either concerned "I've noticed you're binging on the office treats, is there anything you'd like to talk about?" Or "Oi! Hank (Marvin) step away from the biscuits, you can have 3 times as much as anyone else when you bring in 3 times as much. It's a snack table not a food bank."
I'd do the latter.

I used to know a guy like that socially.

The last straw for me was when we were out at a group dinner and everyone ordered meals that came with chips on the side. The restaurant put one basket of chips on the table for every two people (this wasn't spelled out but it was pretty bloody obvious!)

I was sitting opposite him so there was one basket of chips for the two of us. He proceeded to help himself to 3/4 of the basket.

After a few minutes I was ready for some chips and put a few on my plate. He then told me off quite huffily that actually they were his chips blah blah blah

I just avoided him after that. I'm not going to argue with someone over food FFS.

Don't know the answer but I want to work in an office that has a weekly cheese board

I know it shouldn't bother me but that would get my back up big time. It's just greedy and cheeky. Once a year we have an event we all have to help with where loads of treats are laid on. One bloke honestly spends more time helping himself to and eating treats than doing the event. Drives me insane.

Even worse in my workplace as it is predominantly female members of staff so lots of them humour him. If it was a woman up and down as much they would be slated i bet.

We have the same sort of table. It's a first come first served here. Occasionally one person will have several of a type of crisp or biscuits but when it's sweets they won't have any and vice versa. Some people buy more in quantity that others, or more frequently, some bring in delicious homemade cakes twice a year but they are worth waiting for. I wouldn't say anything.

I managed someone like this. She never contributed anything and used to take half a packet of biscuits at a time. When she did it one day, I laughed and said lightheartedly 'Flippin heck - CF - you must be hungry today, can you just make sure there's plenty left to go round'. She didnt do it again.

Have a kitty with a set amount per person and/or take turns on a weekly/daily basis to be the Snack Fairy. Some people snack more than others, and at least you've only got a porky pig rather than a whinyarse who's bought into all the diet industry bullshit and never stops banging on about how 'naughty' it is to snack...

WizzyWig that’s horrible :( OP don’t do that, I know it’s frustrating but maybe if he contributes to the cheese rota already just keep the biscuits on the desk and share them out with who you want when you’re making a cup of tea etc? That way you can all still share.

I know it’s frustrating but I know people who have done similar in the office, one is a guy who clearly has some underlying stuff going on with him and lived alone on a pretty small income, and the other is a single mum who is clearly skint.

So if you want to confront him about the eating issue in and of itself but please make no mention of income or personal life. Especially at work, and especially when you don’t know someone’s living circumstances.

Its for the manager of the office to tell him to just take one or two items per day and not be so greedy. It sounds like he might have some type of binging disorder to be that bad.
If he continues to be a greedy selfish person then the snack table should be stopped and people should just bring in their own food.

We have this at work with several different people all from different departments. We all chip in for biscuits etc and other departments will come along and raid the tin of its contents. We have fridge thieves too. We dont mind sharing but we want them to remember that we pay for them.

I think your manager needs to have a word.Thats what they are there for.

I'm afraid that I do think you are BU.

In some cultures it would be seen as a compliment that someone is so obviously enjoying the shared treats. In my experience there is always leftovers in offices that usually goes into the bin (so I can also understand lady with tupperware).

But mostly YABU because you are not offering the treats in the spirit intended. You shouldn't be keeping tabs on how much people have taken - it is really rude. If the whole office knows that he behaves like this, then they know to grab four satsumas while they are there, or they won't be there next time. Or if they are not happy with this style of behaviour, then don't bring in treats if you are not offering them with good spirit.

On a final note, I find the idea of treats everyday a little U as well. Treat, by the nature of the word, is something occasional.

These things only really work while they work. Most offices don't do it usually because somebody stuffs themselves, doesn't provide their share or complains that the snacks aren't to their taste/aren't up to the high standard of the snacks that they provide.

If the cheese thing is working then keep that, but get everyone to bring in snacks and put them on their own desk. Say out loud "I have satsumas if anyone would like one." Emphasise the 'one' part of that, and even say "one" to him when he tries to walk off with 10. That way the bringer retains ownership of the snacks that they bring but are sharing them, rather than losing ownership of them as soon as they are put on the central table.

We have a 'tuck shop' at work, crisps, fizzy drinks, chocolate - 50p per item. Any profit goes to charity. We are regularly a tenner or so down where people take stuff and don't pay. I'm not sure of the answer.

As have someone like this - our manager has told her off so many times but her skin is just indestructible. She would go to the pub with us - take a drink at every round then go the toilet/smoke/pretend to be on the phone when it was her turn to buy. If she did buy - she would complain how much it cost her then ask for a ride back in a taxi with anyone.

Agree with Blackamericano. This arrangement has stopped working so just stop doing it.

Sounds like our office, I just don't join in anymore because it stresses me out (probably over reacting). But our office takes it in turns to buy a pack of butter, everybody buys Lurpack apart from one guy who will happily use up the Lurpack other people have bought but when it comes to his turn he buys cheap stuff. Really drives me mad so I buy my own butter now or just don't have any. He's also the type to spot food as soon as it comes into the office and start questioning who's it is/can he have some.

I hate office politics.

On the surface it sounds greedy and CFuckery but I would be worried he might be a compulsive eater. I know that I struggle not to eat when food is in front of me and I have to be really mindful at parties to not eat everything in sight. I don't really have any solutions other than I wouldn't be rushing to shame him - he might already be mortified about the situation.

It's been mentioned by others and he doesn't give a shit. So why the hell are you all being so wet. 'Oi, greedy gob, leave some for others! Gees, you're always making off like you've never seen food. Maybe you need to see a doctor about that rather than poaching everything on the table.' Job done.

I would say " oi greedy guts leave some for everyone else "