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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Aibu. ahhh boss quibbling over 1 minute.

340 replies

Peterbear · 09/07/2020 16:59

IWork for a council in E England. NEw boss has just emailed to say that she has checked my time sheets - on a couple of days last month i have written start time as 8am. ( work from home since covid) I did not however send in my 'log on' email till 8.01. I am being asked to go back and amend my time sheet.
Wtf?? Do I say don't be ridiculous that is a complete waste of taxpayer money or do I just play along? Worth saying that I often work a bit over and don't log this as feel it's petty to put for example 5.07 on a time sheet. Wwyd? Aibu to think jesus get a bloody life??

OP posts:
SirGawain · 09/07/2020 17:26

I had a boss, whom I really liked, and he was always fine with me. However he could get a bit obsessive over small things, like the time he dictated a letter to the photocopier company asking them to credit us for about 20 copies that the technician had run off to test the machine. (His time, secretary's time, my time reporting the usage and the postage (pre email days)). It must have amounted to many times the cost of the copies.

Georgielovespie · 09/07/2020 17:26

I would say sorry, yes I'll amend that but make sure you amend it to show the minutes you worked over too. And now make a point never to work over your time again.

I hate this petty 1 minute stuff, do they time you going to the toilet?

caringcarer · 09/07/2020 17:28

Always copy yourself into email then log time exactly every time. Boss just showed what a doc they are.

Tappering · 09/07/2020 17:28

I'd reply back along the lines of: I've amended my timesheet as requested and have also taken the opportunity to record the additional time I'd worked, which I'd also not recorded.

Livelovebehappy · 09/07/2020 17:28

We also have a system in place where it tells your boss if you are away from your laptop. Staff regularly receive calls from our managers with ‘.. you’ve been away from your laptop for 12 minutes. Why?...’ That’s why companies will want workers back in the office ASAP after lockdown has totally lifted, so they can keep more of an eye on things. I doubt, as some people are saying, that wfh will be the new norm.

Hoggleludo · 09/07/2020 17:29

@slightlyoutting I had the same! If we started at 5pm. We were meant to be there unpaid at 4.45.

We all went. Errr. Yeah. Whatever and just carried on.

2155User · 09/07/2020 17:29

As @Tappering suggested. Perfect response

BrightYellowDaffodil · 09/07/2020 17:30

I'm so glad I work for grown-ups who couldn't give a toss as long as the work is getting done, but sadly some managers can't manage so they play this bullshit instead.

Play her at her game and make sure you log every single second of overtime!

NearlyGranny · 09/07/2020 17:30

Unbelievable. Tell her you need a new laptop as it's clearly taking you 60 seconds to log in, which is of course part of your WORK day. 🙄

My eyes have rolled all the way over and back again! Make sure the last thing you do every day is send an email and copy her in and pop 5, 10 or more minutes onto your day. What she gains on the roundabouts she loses on the swings. Has nobody told her?!

Girlwhowearsglasses · 09/07/2020 17:33

I’d email back and say ‘shall I amend the finish time to 17.15 (amend as appropriate)

Or indeed change the finish time too without replying :)

Or actually totally ignore the email and embarrass them into asking again!

DGRossetti · 09/07/2020 17:33

Just setup a deferred email to be sent at 07:59 ?

Livpool · 09/07/2020 17:33

My line manager is like this - I avoid any contact with her as much as possible! I'm working on a project with someone else at the moment and it's great!

Be as petty as they are

Sunnydayshereatlast · 09/07/2020 17:34

Clock off 1 min late and invoice them for double time overtime..

NeedToKnow101 · 09/07/2020 17:36

WTF! Ridiculous

iklboo · 09/07/2020 17:37

How much would 1 minute work out in pay? Is it even a round number?

Fatted · 09/07/2020 17:38

I had a manager like this. It back fired on him though when everyone was suddenly no longer willing to stay behind to finish things and we all left the office at bang on finishing time.

managedmis · 09/07/2020 17:40

How dumb is your boss? Fuck me blind.

Set up an automatic email to be sent daily at 7.45am then sleep till 10am.

Crinkle77 · 09/07/2020 17:40

That really is pathetic. Have you pointed out it takes a couple of minutes to switch the pc on, open your emails and send the log on email? From now on claim your overtime.

happytoday73 · 09/07/2020 17:40

Pleased tell me you've timed how long it takes to log on and open email and send her it.... In fact could video it

FenellaVelour · 09/07/2020 17:43

Not at all surprised to see this is local authority. Some really toxic cultures there. I couldn’t put up with this.

BrokenBrit · 09/07/2020 17:43

Wow that is totally bonkers behaviour. Sorry you are having to deal with that pettiness OP.
Surely it takes at least a minute to turn the computer on?! But the whole thing is madness.

lowlandLucky · 09/07/2020 17:45

Ask her to correlate the time on all of the computers being used

Original poster
Peterbear · 09/07/2020 17:46

Thankyou thankyou for all of your funny and wise responses. I needed some perspective and to remind myself that this is not normal. :)

OP posts:
Alsohuman · 09/07/2020 17:46

@DGRossetti

Just setup a deferred email to be sent at 07:59 ?
Perfect. I can’t believe people are this small minded.
Celticdawn5 · 09/07/2020 17:47

There seem to be a number of Jobsworth managers about!
A manager of mine once queried, accusingly and aggressively, 36p of my expenses claim. It was perfectly correct and I suppose they were correct to query if they had misgivings but the cost to the department for me to clarify and re do the expenses sheet because the original one had been cancelled cost the dept. Much, much, more than 36p.plus they lost my goodwill and I was never quite as co operative as I had been before. It was the way it was handled and the way they made me feel like a criminal and that sort of thing stays with you.
Incidentally the same manager, who I had, out of the goodness of my heart, driven in MY car 30 miles to a Christmas lunchtime works do, leapt out of the car whilst I was putting the parking ticket on the screen saying ‘you can’t claim that’ .It hadn’t entered my head.
Over ten years ago now and I am still put out !