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Original poster

Tea club abuse?

52 replies

TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 15:42

At my work we have a tea club. For £10 every 3 months we have:

Various teas, various coffee, hot chocolate, milk and milk substitutes.
Biscuits.
Bread, crumpets, bagels, croissants.
Butter, jam, marmite, peanut butter, soft cheese.
Fruit, yoghurt.
Multipacks of crisps.

There's recently been TeaClubGate where a couple of people have been spotted taking a loaf of bread or a handful of teabags home. Their argument is that they've paid for it and its no different from using it at work. Others think it's stealing and that tea club items should only be used at work. Still others are on the fence and think a few teabags or some bread or milk is fine, but a whole jar of jam or tub of butter is not.

Possibly also worth noting that this isn't an office. We start work in the same place but go out and about to do the actual work, so people often take fruit, yoghurts etc out with them for later. But are still at work, just not at base. This is not frowned upon.

What do you think?

OP posts:
viques · 15/10/2023 16:09

I think you need to cut down on the stuff your tea club offers. Tea, coffee, milk, sugar, hot chocolate. Anything else people supply their own.

Totalwasteofpaper · 15/10/2023 16:09

A loaf of bread is £1.50 jars of jam even more. This is absolutely wrong. If you one time you remember you ran out of tea bags and take 3-4 to tide you over to Saturday I couldn't get excited. They are 2p each... If you are taking 10 every Friday for weekend tea I'd be unimpressed at your cheapness

It's such a shame as £10 is a total bargain!!!!!

i think this is a classic case of "this is why we can't have nice things" 😔☹️😑

NuffSaidSam · 15/10/2023 16:10

No-one should be taking it home unless it's going to go bad over the weekend.

Stuff that is at the end of its life should be put somewhere separate for people to take home, first come, first served. Like a reduced counter.

2023shady · 15/10/2023 16:11

I took milk home once when I didn't have time - but I replaced it the next day and spoke to the organiser first
They were fine with that, the "oh shit I forgot to get bread, can I take this and I'll bring some to work tomorrow?"

Dogfureverywhere · 15/10/2023 16:15

CFs! Time to reduce what's on offer: tea, coffee, hot chocolate, milk, sugar only!
Any food items need to brought in from home by each individual for their own consumption.

redalex261 · 15/10/2023 16:16

NO WAY! they cannot take it home! tight bastards, if they are so parsimonious should not be in club. Oh, and a tenner for three months is mega cheap! Its great if your office does this, saves remembering to bring milk in every day, such a hassle. Someone taking fresh milk etc on Friday pm is fine (not same person all the time) to avoid waste, but that is it. Sadly, there are stingy buggers in every biggish workplace, always quibbling about contributions for gift or charity collections, birthday lunch dos (“I have my calculator for the individual bill breakdown” instead of divvying by number of attendees). Do not know how they can look their colleagues in the face after being caught out on this one!

Original poster
TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 16:16

Expiry dates not an excuse, we're shift workers and there are people there 24/7.

I think I'm team "a couple of teabags or a bagel is fine, anything more is taking the piss"

OP posts:
whalewise · 15/10/2023 16:19

How many people Are in tea club ?

10 quid is so cheap.

Jenasaurus · 15/10/2023 16:21

We had a similar situation. Although not a tea club. I work for emergency services and we get things brought in from grateful organisations. One time we had boxes of prefilled could be coffee cups. One guy decided to take 3 massive boxes home. He was a temp and no longer works here but he did it blatantly in front of others and said they were free so took them

TheOctomyTober · 15/10/2023 16:22

I think if it's a fairly relaxed arrangement at the moment, ie take stuff out and about, ok to take a tea bag home etc then it's hard to know exactly where to draw the line and people will push it.

Sadly, the people who do always ruin a nice relaxed arrangement for the rest.

Could be time to review as a group and agree some ground rules.

On a side note, is it expected everyone will join in even if they don't drink hot drinks? Or are they allowed alternative drinks in the group set up?

Original poster
TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 16:24

whalewise · 15/10/2023 16:19

How many people Are in tea club ?

10 quid is so cheap.

I don't run it but I think it's around 60

OP posts:
CallMeDaphne · 15/10/2023 16:24

First rule of Tea Club.

No one talks about Tea Club.

Catopia · 15/10/2023 16:24

They're taking the mickey. They can basically get breakfast and lunch out of what you provide 5 days a week. That's a huge bargain. There's a massive difference between slapping up a peanut butter sandwich, and taking a whole loaf of bread, and they know it. The exception may be on a Friday night if it will go off over the weekend, but anyone caught doing this needs to be taken to one side to confirm if everything is ok at home that they cannot afford to buy basic food - because if that is not the problem they simply need to be told that it is unacceptable, that they need to return it and if they are caught again they will be thrown out of the club.

Original poster
TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 16:27

TheOctomyTober · 15/10/2023 16:22

I think if it's a fairly relaxed arrangement at the moment, ie take stuff out and about, ok to take a tea bag home etc then it's hard to know exactly where to draw the line and people will push it.

Sadly, the people who do always ruin a nice relaxed arrangement for the rest.

Could be time to review as a group and agree some ground rules.

On a side note, is it expected everyone will join in even if they don't drink hot drinks? Or are they allowed alternative drinks in the group set up?

There is squash and sometimes fruit juice, but no one is obliged to join the tea club at all.
There is also a pay as you go option, there's an honesty jar where you can chuck in 20p and help yourself to a tea or some toast or whatever. So anyone not in the tea club can do that if they fancy it as a one off. We also have people coming in from other bases so they can do this too.

People helping themselves without paying at all is a whoooole other issue.

OP posts:
ginasevern · 15/10/2023 16:35

@TexasTyson

I don't really understand how the tea club is operated tbh. If you rarely ever get back to base then presumably all of the goodies are almost always consumed "on the run". Your colleagues must therefore be wrapping up sandwiches and making hot beverages in thermos cups to go. Is this done when they arrive in the morning before they hit the road? It all sounds a bit messy to me and I'd be inclined to have a rethink. However, to answer the original question I think it is very cheeky to take things home unless perhaps the ingredients are just going to get binned (on Friday before the weekend for example).

SkinnyMalinkyLankyLegs · 15/10/2023 16:53

If people just helped themselves to stuff to take home then there would be nothing left!

New rules of the teaclub - things are for use only at the office and to eat during the course of the day if out and about. If you don't want to adhere to these rules, then you're out of the teaclub!

Original poster
TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 16:57

ginasevern · 15/10/2023 16:35

@TexasTyson

I don't really understand how the tea club is operated tbh. If you rarely ever get back to base then presumably all of the goodies are almost always consumed "on the run". Your colleagues must therefore be wrapping up sandwiches and making hot beverages in thermos cups to go. Is this done when they arrive in the morning before they hit the road? It all sounds a bit messy to me and I'd be inclined to have a rethink. However, to answer the original question I think it is very cheeky to take things home unless perhaps the ingredients are just going to get binned (on Friday before the weekend for example).

It's shift work, so start and finish at base, go out, maybe pop in once or twice during the shift to have a wee or finish paperwork. So then can make toast, top up thermos etc.

OP posts:
oohsharon · 15/10/2023 17:11

"This is one thing, among many, I don't miss about working at an office."

OP clearly says she doesn't work in an office. Sounds like paramedics or similar.

I'd get rid of the crumpets etc and just do tea and coffee tbh

findingithardertoday · 15/10/2023 17:11

Separate and go NC. They are gaslighting CFs. If they're lying about this, what else are they lying about? Have you checked they're not cheating on you by giving the biscuits to people outside of the agreed relationship (they knew your boundaries at the start, and biscuit affairs are not okay!). Get a good lawyer and make sure they disclose all of their hidden tea deposits before settling the financial order. Get on OLD and find new TCBs (tea and coffee buddies). You deserve better and you can do it! 😂.

UsingChangeofName · 15/10/2023 17:15

People taking stuff home are being ridiculous.

£10 for 3months is ridiculously cheap for all of that food as well, but clearly, it is there for when you are at work. Yes, you can be at work away from the supplies, so you can eat an apple / bagel / piece of toast as you walk out of the building, and put your hot drink into a thermal mug, but that's for you to eat / drink as you work or travel to the next job. Not to feed you in your own home. That's just ridiculous thinking.

Cherrysoup · 15/10/2023 17:18

Taking an entire loaf is major piss taking.

ginasevern · 15/10/2023 17:29

@TexasTyson

Ah, I see but I would still be inclined to knock it on the head. This sort of thing at work always causes rows. You've already hinted that some colleagues don't pay their fair share and others are outright stealing. I know it's a shame and it is a nice idea but unfortunately human nature gets in the way and spoils it for everyone.

Original poster
TexasTyson · 15/10/2023 17:43

ginasevern · 15/10/2023 17:29

@TexasTyson

Ah, I see but I would still be inclined to knock it on the head. This sort of thing at work always causes rows. You've already hinted that some colleagues don't pay their fair share and others are outright stealing. I know it's a shame and it is a nice idea but unfortunately human nature gets in the way and spoils it for everyone.

I don't run it so no control over it.
People not paying isn't too bad overall as it's likely just to be a tea or a piece of toast. A bit shit but not costing the earth. I do think taking home whole loaves of bread or a tub of butter is taking the piss though!

OP posts:
ginasevern · 15/10/2023 17:56

@TexasTyson

Yes it is definitely taking the piss! That is not the "spirit" of the tea club. I assume other colleagues are moaning about the situation and not just you? I think everyone who pays their money into the club should have some say in how it is run. Couldn't one of you ask the organiser to send an email to all concerned with up-dated rules or at least some clarification? This could be diplomatically worded surely. Out of interest, when are these miscreants taking a whole loaf of bread and tub of butter and doesn't this necessitate buying replacements?

LadyEloise1 · 15/10/2023 18:24

FarEast · 15/10/2023 15:59

It's stealing. THe point of an at-work tea club is that it's for work. Not to take stuff home.

Stealing.

I agree