Was I unreasonable to go to Pilates in the middle of the day? Feel sick....

[SisterJude7]

I work from home and am allocated 30 minutes for lunch. I am chronically underpaid for my level of seniority (I manage a small team). In my view, it is inhumane to expect human beings to only take a mere 30 minutes to recuperate, although many of my colleagues relish missing their lunch breaks and wear their lack of lunch as a badge of honour. I admittedly sometimes go for a run, attend a gym class or run some errands before school pick up which is beneficial for my own wellbeing. No issues with my performance, I work my hours and I have finished late on numerous occasions anyway. The daytime classes tend to be cheaper and use less of my Class Pass points and besides, I have zero time in the evening.

Anyway, on Friday, I attended a 50 minute Pilates class. I don't usually pay much attention to the other attendees, but during the warm-up, I was absolutely blindsided to see a director on the carriage opposite (she has Fridays off). My stomach absolutely dropped-she definitely clocked me and looked stony-faced but briefly nodded. To make matters worse, the shock went straight to my bowels, so I needed to dash to the loo 😭😭. I had no choice but to complete the class which felt like the longest 50 minutes of my life with a churning stomach. She scuttled out at the end of the class.

Do you think I will be in trouble? I have spent all weekend ruminating. I don't want recent minor transgressions to be put under the microscope- I've been spoken to informally about my dogs barking in a client meeting and once I also forgot a teams meeting and popped to the supermarket. I don't want to be forced to go back to the London office as my dogs have separation anxiety and I need to be around to pick up my DCs. Should I say something and get in there first? My DH thinks I am overreacting, it will be fine and that I should just buy a mouse jiggler from Amazon which I don't agree with.

I'd immediately make sure it was in my diary as late lunch or something.

How long were you away from work for? You took a train to and from a 50 min Pilates class, am I understanding that correctly?

Reformer pilates carriages so the reformer machines! The studio is a 10 minute walk from my house.

By carriage she means the reformer Pilates equipment I assume. Not that she was on a train.

Please don't buy a mouse jiggler! There is software that can recognise the use of those. I know you must be worried, but even if she does report you, it's unlikely to result in anything other than a warning. Just try to be more careful next time! Can you take your phone and respond to an email or two while you're out? Many jobs offer flexibility these days, and people are just as (if not more so) productive even without rigid hours.

Thank you!

I work somewhere where I get a 30 minute lunch...it sucks! But thats what I take...i can always leave if I don't like it. Yabu imo, why do you think you can just disregard your hours and take a longer lunch break?

What are your working hours? I'm surprised you get a 30 minute lunch break if you finish work for school run, most only give it if you're working 6 hours or more.

To then take more than double does seem cheeky.

If you really value working from home, work. And stop taking the piss with nipping out instead of working.

Love this thread 😆 🤣

If you’re allocated a 30 minute lunch break, I’m afraid that’s what you need to take. Swapping hours around for school runs etc I could kind of understand but nipping off to the supermarket and the gym just doesn’t sit right with me when you’re supposed to be working.

So realistically you took about an hour and 15 minutes instead of 30 minutes. Umm yeah a bit of a piss take! Considering you'll also need lunch as well, which you;d need time to buy/prep/cook as well as eat.

Also, I know I could google this but can somebody explain WTF is a reformer Pilates carriage.

I mean nowhere I have worked would it be a problem - as long as you manage your workload and aren't taking the absolute piss you can take long lunch breaks some days if you want. But it sounds like your company is very strict for some reason.

Would they be OK with you saying you were making up for it by:

• Working an extra 30m at the start/end of the day, or
• Working through lunch a different day of the week ?

You are taking the piss and I say this as someone someone who does reformer Pilates at lunch 3 times a week! Since you value the WFH arrangement so much if I were you I would stick to the rules (even if you don’t agree with them).

A mouse jiggler would be the worst thing you could do
Tbh I think I'd be upfront about it you know you shouldn't be doing it if you've only got a 30 minute break.
Absolutely I agree with you fixed lunch breaks are ridiculous in a office based role and where you work flexibly to the businesses benefit the culture of your business clearly has it's own expectations and they've already picked you up on perceived indiscretions - do you have to work somewhere you're not trusted? Id be looking for a new job anyway

I Googled and a photo came up - easier than anyone trying to explain to you but it's a piece of exercise equipment basically.

OP, you've littered your opening post with excuses and even dragged other colleagues in with the 'badge of honour' bit that has nothing to do with you.

Hopefully you'll be fine but if not, just accept that's the risk you happily took.

I’d say you’re got your card marked now and are on a time-keeping watch list. Taking at least 1 hour 15 mins when you only get a 30-min lunch break is majorly taking the piss. It also may affect your employers trust in you and they’ll wonder how often you are out and about having long lunch breaks.

If you are so desperate to do this class then ask your manager if you can come to an arrangement on that specific day to work mongers hours to make the time up, but expect to be told no.

I mean it reads like rage bait to me, to spin the rhetoric about people working from home being shysters.

If I've read correctly you regularly go for runs, pop to the supermarket, go to the gym during working hours and your husband advised you get a mouse jiggler to disguise this. You have 30 minutes for lunch but took an hour to go to pilates.

I WFH and do these sorts of things but it all goes in my calendar and it's all accepted because I often have to do work outside of business hours. The fact that you're worrying suggests you know you're taking the pee.

If you don't agree with salary, time off, seniority, responsibility etc. then you either have to negotiate something else or find a new job. You can't unilaterally decide to add some extra perks, take double time for lunch etc. just because you feel hard done by in other aspects of your job. Well you can, but expect there to be consequences if found out.

You need to be up front about it and ask if you can have the 1 hr 10 mins off each Friday in return for working later one day per week. It isn’t just 50 mins - it is the 2x10 min walk to and from on top. On one level it is not a big thing but it is a trust and honesty issue, which is a big thing in itself.

In theory, if you are making the time up at the end of the day then it shouldn’t be an issue. But I used to wfh and always worried about taking the piss with lunch breaks or being needed and not being there, purely because there’s such a stigma about people who wfh doing exactly that!
Im all for flexible working but if you are getting paid for 7.5 hours and you’ve only done 6 hours then it’s a little unfair. If you made the time up it shouldn’t be an issue and I would amend your diary with the relevant times to say ‘private appointment’ or whatever.

Being underpaid in your role doesn’t really give you the right to longer lunches. You don’t have to be in that job with you’re unhappy with the pay. But you need to abide by their terms while you’re there.

and you also ..."admittedly sometimes go for a run, attend a gym class or run some errands before school pick up"... so with all your exercise, chores and school runs are you actually doing any work?!

I would imagine they won't look kindly on someone who has already been seen to be taking advantage of wfh (going to the supermarket & missing a meeting, dogs barking during a meeting).

A 30 minute, rigid lunchbreak for a person in a senior role does sound unreasonable though. Usually seniority brings a degree of flexibility.

It's a machine you sit/lie on to do the Pilates. It has a bench thingy that moves along as you stretch. Never heard it called a carriage before though!

Yeah I thought that was a bit ragebait too.

It’s people like the OP taking the utter piss who are spoiling WFH opportunities for everyone else.
You fully deserve to be in trouble. They are not paying you to go to the supermarket or attend bloody reformer classes!