About breakfast at work

[WishingILivedOnAnIsland]

Every day without fail one of our senior administrators comes in on time, gets herself settled, then spends 10 minutes in the kitchen constructing a complicated bowlful of breakfast. She takes the bowl to her desk and slowly eats in the open plan office until around 9:30am. She then signals the start of her work day by returning her bowl to the kitchen. Anyone who approaches her regarding work prior to The Bowl’s Return is met with a withering look and an ‘excuse me I am eating my breakfast’ as though they’ve walked into her own kitchen out of hours and demanded a favour.

I’m her manager and I’m starting to get complaints. Both about her commandeering an additional 30 odd minutes break, and also about the tart rebuke she gives anyone who dares interrupt her morning ritual.

Here’s the thing- I don’t really care that she does this as in every other way she is a sensational employee. She is a proud set-in-her-ways kind of person and wont respond well to negative feedback. It would be a disaster if she quit and we had to replace her with a mediocre employee whose only advantage is that they eat their breakfast at home.

So AIBU to let this breakfast nonsense play on? My colleagues seem to think so and are salty with me for my inaction thus far.

Depends if it is a career job or a hours job. I work in a job where you are paid to fullfill a role not necessary hours. But tbh I would make a light comment about it to bring it to her atti

Attention

Still not sorted this out then OP?

Back to the crux of it then. It doesn't matter if she's eating at her desk, it doesn't matter if it takes her 30 minutes. It does matter that, during that time, she refuses to speak to other people or allows them to interrupt her with WORK queries. It doesn't matter that she's 'efficient' (which she isn't because, as I've said before, she isn't doing her job which is, in part, to help, inform, advise or work with other people - unless it's on her terms). She can take up the slack, she can finish 4 other people's jobs whilst standing on her head juggling tennis balls with her feet. It makes no difference. She is making herself unavailable to fellow workers during work time.

And yes, other people may be off having a fag break. My BIL is a smoker. He's also a project manager. When he goes out for a cigarette he tells his team that he's got his phone with him.
They call him if they need him or have a query whilst he's out.
He doesn't say 'can't speak now I'm smoking'. When I was office based and had to occasionally make a personal call (book a doctor, deal with the solicitor when we were moving) I'd put the phone down if someone hovered. I wouldn't send them away. I was supposed to be working.

As for the comment Personally, if I were the OP, the next time someone complained about this would say 'she completes x,y,z. She helps you and others complete their x,y,z. I don't care if she has a 3 course meal and a nan nap at 2pm. You can eat your breakfast at your desk as long as you can do the same. And if you don't like it, look for work elsewhere'. That'd be just what would go in my exit interview, in capitals, along with the reason for leaving was an inefficient manager.

I do not think your employee is that great. She does the 'whats' - the outcomes but seems rubbish on the 'hows' if she's being rude to other staff who dare to interrupt her.

I do think you need to take it up with her.

"she isn't doing her job which is, in part, to help, inform, advise or work with other people - unless it's on her terms"

That would go for anyone who does things so that they're not interrupted. Anyone who has their own office and closes the door, or who goes to a quiet working space. Anyone who wears headphones, anyone who is in a meeting when you want to talk to them. Anyone who works from home sometimes.
I don't see why you have to be available every second, unless there's something that can't wait.

"When I was office based and had to occasionally make a personal call (book a doctor, deal with the solicitor when we were moving) I'd put the phone down if someone hovered."

Well, I wouldn't. I'd use my own phone for personal calls and would move away from my desk both for privacy and to avoid disturbing others with the sound of a call they don't need to hearing.
I don't work for the emergency services so my colleagues can cope without me for 10 minutes.

The problem is not the time she takes having breakfast, but her rudeness. She can be perfectly polite to her co-workers and say something like: "I really need to have some time to myself before I start my, and management's fine with that. Could you please come back in X minutes or so?"

This is hilarious. I can eat my breakfast and work at the same time.

All my colleagues can. We don't work in the 1950s.

You're totally reasonable prioritising a good employee shock, eating and working at the same time over those who just like to whinge.

I think the rest of the department should get there first with breakfast in their bowls and sit in the kitchen all together and say "don't disturb us-we're eating breakfast" if anyone tries to speak.

*does she stay half an hour later than the rest of get paid for 2.5 hours less a week?

No, because she is a salaried employee, not a shift worker at McDonald's.*

What does that have to do with anything? I'm salaried but I have to work 36.5 hours per week or I'd have a disciplinary

By the OPs admission she’s a ‘proud set in her ways’ employee who won’t take any negative criticism and is obstructive towards anyone approaching her for half an hour every morning.

She is not a valuable employee, she sounds like a fucking nightmare. Grow a pair OP and stop thinking everyone should put up with her shit attitude

@Whisky2014 who on earth gets 8 weeks' holiday a year? 4 weeks' plus bank.holidays is standard surely?

She sounds awful & you should face up to it and deal with her. She has a dreadful attitude!! What a total jobsworth!

This; in spades!
You're the manager - tell her what her core working hours are, and tell her to eat before 9am - or introduce a no eating at desk policy.

Im going to be snippy, I cant stand managers who cant actually manage, they leave disaffected staff in their wake.

You are a poor manager. This will escalate with other members of staff. You need to manage

I don't have a problem with people eating at their desk, dodgy timekeeping etc as long as people do a good job and it sounds like she's great at hers.

Her attitude in how she speaks to people however is completely unacceptable.

Would it kill her to say "sure - I'm just finishing breakfast but will look at it as soon as I can" or "yes - just give me give minutes" or something a bit less arsey?

Definitely talk to her about it. Frame it with how valued she is.

It seems a lot of people actually enjoy being treated like children and see it as desirable. Glad I didn’t manage people like that, I’d have been whinged about continuously.

She doesn't sound like a sensational employee.

She sounds like a nightmare who is taking the piss

Given that OP actually works with and manages her, it’s probably safe to say she’s in a better position to judge how good she is. If she says she’s sensational we should probably take her word for it rather than arguing the toss.

Yabu.

In hours she’s accumulating yearly 126 hours a year, monetary value it’s if NMW just under £1000

You say she’s more efficient, however as a manager, your giving her preferential treatment which is discriminatory and can be construed as nepotism, irregardless if she is more productive.

Your walking a thin line OP.

who on earth gets 8 weeks' holiday a year? 4 weeks' plus bank.holidays is standard surely?

Where I work, those below a certain grade get 6 weeks plus bank, above that get 7 weeks plus bank (4 of which we are shut)

*4 days of which we are shut, that should say!

In hours she’s accumulating yearly 126 hours a year, monetary value it’s if NMW just under £1000

Why are people quoting hours and figures like this as if that’s the only indicator of someone’s worth to a company?

The OP has said she’s super efficient and finishes other people’s work for them.

It’s possible to sit your arse on a chair for the allotted time and do very fucking little. Another person might spend less time on the chair and accomplish ten times as much.

If the business is smart, they’ll value outputs.

"4 weeks' plus bank.holidays is standard surely?"

Well, I think that's probably the minimum. Plenty of places get more. 30, days rather than 20, is common in the public sector. Some places close over Christmas and give that as additional (as they should, I was shocked to find out some places close and actually take it out of their staff's leave).

Alsohuman- you might think employees should put up with a colleague giving them withering looks and refusing to interact with them. Very outdated attitude that- that just because someone has worked somewhere for donkeys years they can stick doggedly to a ridiculous routine and be obstructive towards colleagues. It reminds me of schools where no one dared sit in certain chairs in the staff room because they might get a withering look from some old timer. That kind of thing went out in about the 70s thankfully.