Colleague stole my mug

[NewtMumLife]

Would you take someone else’s mug in the office?!! I had to rescue my mug from someone’s desk which was half filled with cold coffee yesterday and I think it’s really rude to just take someone’s mug without even asking, especially as there are plenty of other mugs they could use. The colleague didn’t even wash it up and didn’t apologise. The mug was a present from my husband. AIBU?

Had you left the mug in a communal kitchen cupboard? If so, how are people supposed to know it’s yours? If you’re that bothered, put it in a drawer or somewhere out of the way while you’re not using it

If it was swiped from you desk -rude

If it was swiped from a communal mug cupboard - fair game

absolutely definitely not worth giving a second thought OP. Take someone else’s mug, it’s the ciiiiircle of liiiiiife

I am a supply teacher, so drink coffee in many staff rooms. In some, mugs are a free for all, and Mrs Smith has no issue with you drinking from the mug with her name on it. In others, using that mug with the dodgy cartoon is a capital offence.

If your workplace takes the latter approach, YANBU. If it's the former, keep your mug in a drawer, or accept it will be used.

Not enough info to vote.

In our office kitchen all mugs are communal, anyone with a social mug keeps their mug in their locker or cupboard.

If you keep it in the kitchen they likely thought it was a communal mug. If they took it off your desk that is cheeky fuckery. Make sure not to leave it in any communal space and all should be well.

Don't take precious things to work. You could take a flask.

Same as others, in our office kitchen all mugs are communal. I bring my own things to use sometimes but I keep them separately as nobody would know what’s mine and what’s communal.

A drawer? What's one of those? No drawers at my workplace. It's hot desks and if you are lucky, you have a locker.

It's a case of bring your mug with you every day, or leave it in the communal cupboard.

Mugs do go missing from time to time, but they usually reappear - although sometimes it takes weeks! Luckily it doesn't affect me.

She didnt steal it. If she stole it it wouldn't be on the premises.
She used it uninvited.
As others have said if its kept in a communal kitchen its likely to be used by others. Get one that says mug belongs to @NewtMumLife
The ones with names on tend to be the only ones that people dont use at our place.

Why are you claiming it was stolen? That’s clearly not true. Someone used your mug.

Does it have “Newtmums Mug - Do Not Touch” written on it?

No its rude but if its an important mug to you then take it home and bring in a cheap plain one instead that you dont care about. In case it gets nicked or broken.

Massively depends where it was left.

Personal mugs are left in our drawers or on our desks.

Communal mugs are left on the draining board or in the cupboard where plates etc is kept.

We have a right mismatch of communal mugs and I wouldn't know who originally brought what mug in.

No-one is unreasonable for taking one off the draining board or out of the plate cupboard in our work.

Taking off a desk or out of a drawer... unreasonable!

If it’s that important to you then I’d keep it at my own desk.

This 😂

Stealing is what I did to an office teapot. It's in my cupboard at home. Borrowing is what OP's colleague did.

Yep.

Overinvested now because I definitely have "my" mugs. Luckily the main one has my name on it at this point.

Some workplaces have "Only use your own mug! Only ever sit in the same seat in the staff room!" unwritten rules. Others are more relaxed and don’t. Either you or your colleague has misunderstood the "rules" in your workplace.

If it worries you that much, don’t leave your mug in a communal place.

If your mug is important then keep it with you. I bring my mug to the office and then take it home at the end of the day. It is never left in the kitchen so no one can use it.

Exactly

Unless they literally stole it from your desk or drawer, YABU.

Lock it away or take it home with you every night and bring it back in the morning if you’re bothered.

It’s annoying if it’s a good mug but it’s to be expected.

So it wasn’t stolen it was used by someone. Big difference.

Keep mine in my locker, along with eating utensils. Ingrained habit from sharing a kitchen space with men. Gross. Apologies to those men who are hygienic at work.

Exactly.