'He had to send out an email to the team recalling the rule': Team manager insists late employees need to bring breakfast for their entire team, employee humbles him with expensive meal purchase

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Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Nov 7, 2023 5:00 PM EST

This boss got a little overeager about enforcing the rules. 

As a manager, this man thought he could make up rules for his employees to follow. But that's not always a manager's job---usually, they're supposed to make sure everyone else follows the rules and regulations. This manager was trying to solve an ongoing issue at his workplace, which was that employees were constantly late. 

Every office treats latenesses differently. Some take a militant stance that everyone should be in their seats at 9AM sharp each day, while others don't mind if employees breeze in sometime before 10AM. It's completely dependent on the workplace culture and the demands of the job. 

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  • 01
    '[You] must buy breakfast for the team if you are late'
    via Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

  • U/ConfusedNakedBroker shared their story from when they worked at a large logistics company. They and their coworkers were often about 10-15 minutes late, and their boss was not happy that his employees were making this a habit. However, the OP wasn't happy with the way their boss dealt with the situation. It seems like their boss tried to do something the “fun” way, but ended up taking his rules too seriously. 

    Check out the entire story below. Then, these people found the perfect recipes online, but made some substitutions of their own, like one person who added sausage to their Thanksgiving stuffing, in place of sage. 

  • 02
    Must buy breakfast for the team if you are late M Little background here. I work with a large multi-billion corporation in logistics where we are largely commission based doing sales. Everyone here is in control over their own clients and book of business. We have managers, but they aren't there to run your book or micromanage, they are there to help motivate you and find solutions to things you may have not run into yet. If I don't come in one day or am late it doesn't hurt
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 03
    anyone but myself, so I work as much as I possibly can. Being a little late shouldn't be a big deal, but it got to the point a large chunk of the office was routinely showing up 10-15 minutes after start (I agree being late shouldn't be a habit, but they are only hurting themselves, if they don't hit numbers they will just get fired). Living in a central state and having mainly east coast clients means I am in the office about an hour before most people anyway. Well, my team manager enacted a ru
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 04
    minutes late, you have to bring breakfast for the team (my team is 16 people). So everyone showed up on time last week, then Thursday rolls around and I called him to explain how my dog is puking and I will be 30 minutes to an hour late. He just replies via text I better bring breakfast for everyone. Even though I am historically there well before anyone, I was to become his first subject and example. I called to say no I cannot do that, Christmas is coming up and I have travel
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 05
    plans I need the money for. Well, he pushes back and says to bring it anyway. Now I'm fairly p as my team originally thought the rule was a joke and in no way enforceable... So an idea forms in my mind, I was not going to take this. I call up Einstein Bros and order 16 double egg and bacon sandwiches and a 16 large orange juices. When I make it in about an hour late, the team loves the gesture and my manager doesn't say a word as he grabs his oj and sandwich. Now here's where the
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 06
    fun comes in, our expense reports were due the next day in order to receive it by the following paycheck. I expense the full ~180 and submit it without saying a word to him. The branch manager called me in the next morning (we are on extremely good terms, very chill guy) and asks what the expense is for. When I explain team breakfast and the rule, and show him the texts from my manager he gets red in the face and tells me okay no problem it will get paid and to be on my way.
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 07
    Not 5 minutes later my manager gets a call and everyone could immediately see on his face him getting yelled at. He goes into the branch managers office and proceeds to get a long talking to about what he can and cannot enforce on employees. Looking extremely defeated he sat down and didn't say a word the rest of the day. He had to send out an email to the team recalling the rule about breakfast and apologizing if he put undue pressure on us and that he just "wants us to succeed, and being late
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 08
    sumelar And that is why you always get a paper trail.
    via u/sumelar
  • 09
    hotlavatube. My professor had an alleged policy where if your phone went off in class then you had to buy ice cream for everyone. It was never enforced, and no one ever did it, but we sure did remind him of that policy when HIS phone went off once.
    via u/hotlavatube
  • 10
    flaquito_ I was initially hoping that you'd come in with a single cheerio for everyone. But your way worked much better.
    via u/flaquito_
  • 11
    pumper911 I'm worried about how this might impact your relationship with your boss now though. Actually, I don't know you so I really don't give as I guess more "aren't you worried"
    via u/pumper911
  • 12
    Sa ConfusedNakedBroker OP Fair and yes normally, but to be frank, I don't care and am not worried. The managers are here 100% to help the newer people build their client base. I've been here 4 years, am profitable for the company, and have had a string of managers. I don't think I seriously interacted with a manager in the last 2 years. If it does impact anything, there are many other teams I could request a transfer to without problem.
    via u/ConfusedNakedBroker
  • 13
    Galiphile I love this sub. Also, I read "a dozen and a half donuts" as 12.5 donuts. I'm not a smart man.
    via u/Galiphile
  • 14
    pHScale The next week Monday morning, I brought in breakfast for the team again, a dozen and a half donuts for about $14. This is the absolute best part of this. It says to that guy "yeah, I could've done it this way before. But I want it to be very clear to you that I'm sending a message."
    via u/pHScale
  • 15
    Licensed pterodactyl That was dang clever, well done. I was almost positive you were going to come in much later with a homemade breakfast spread. Your way was cheaper, faster, and smarter.
    via u/Licensedpterodactyl

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boss breakfast workplace-stories jobs job orange juice malicious compliance bosses work coworkers malicious-compliance-reddit team breakfast food Office workplace food bagels malicious compliance reddit team
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