Flexi-time employee gets chewed out for 10 minutes of overtime, maliciously complies the next time their boss needs them to stay late: 'Policy is policy'

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    "If you have a problem, it better be a fifteen minute problem!"
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    If you have a problem, it better be a fifteen minute problem! S My husband told me a story yesterday about his act of malicious compliance that happened about a decade ago. In a previous job, he worked 8-4 in an office. Many of his colleagues worked 9-5, so they were still working when he was leaving. When he was about to
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    leave, he'd usually be asked a technical question or asked to quickly glance over something by another member of staff. This was rarely quick and usually had him standing around for a further ten minutes which, on a regular basis, starts to add up.
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    One day, his manager was going over the monthly time sheets and asked my husband why he'd added 10 minutes on five days across past month. Bear in mind, flexi-time was allowed. My husband explained the situation, referring to the specific problems he was asked to deal with on each of those five days.
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    The manager told him that the company only works in fifteen minute segments so he can't put down 10 minutes, it would have to be 15 minutes. "However, we can't round it up because that's dishonest," he said. "So just bear it in mind for next time." This was in front of the rest of the office.
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    That very same week, my husband signs out of his computer at 4pm. Just before he leaves, the manager asks him to explain some of the particulars in an email he'd received from a contractor. My husband asks,
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    "how long will it take?" The manager replies, "just five minutes." My husband then says, "unless it's a fifteen minute problem, I'll have to look at it tomorrow. Is it a fifteen minute problem?"
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    His manager turns red and awkwardly says it's not. My husband respectfully states that he will put it at the top of his to- do list the following morning and leaves.
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    One of his colleagues texted him just after 5 and said there was an awkward silence after he'd left and when the manager eventually got up and left to do something, they all burst out laughing.
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    feyrath 3 hr. ago Wouldn't want to be dishonest Vote Reply Share ... lynxSnowCat 3 hr. ago I've had many managers tell me to just round up to the nearest half-hour increment so that accounting wouldn't get out of their rythym calculating payroll (down to the minute). -
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    fizzlefist 3 hr. ago "sorry, policy is policy." ✰ Vote Reply Share Loose_Alternative 990 OP 3 hr. ago ⚫ edited 2 hr. ago Exactly. He was prepared to quote the policy if his manager challenged him the next day but he didn't. Wise.
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    tippy25 2 hr. ago Time sheet rounding policies are only legal if it goes both ways. If an employer is only ever rounding down, that is wage theft and they need to be taken to court.
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    Immediate-Season-293 1 hr. ago I worked for a company that did work contracted by the state of Nevada. We were told by the state to bill everything in 15 minutes increments, and that our timecards had to match. So much simpler. I just told everyone that worked for us that if it takes 5 minutes, put 15 minutes on it, and on your timecard.
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    Least_Adhesiveness_5 3 hr. ago That manager got away with wage theft. Vote Reply Share grumpyromantic · 3 hr. ago It doesn't say he didn't pay him for that time though.
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    judolphin 54 min. ago edited just now Whenever I mentor somebody, talk to my spouse about billing time, etc, I always say to round to the nearest quarter hour or half hour and make that quarter/half-hour choice your minimum, as in anything more than zero is at least 15/30 minutes billed (if you're being honest, statistically it'll balance out over time).
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    And if somebody takes your time off-hours, charge a minimum of an hour for it. In fact when I was an independent contractor, I put it in my service agreements that if I received a call after business hours, or on weekends and holidays, the
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    minimum charge was a full hour because getting that call made me in work mode and interfered with my personal time to rest, be alone, or be with family. Also false precision is a thing, just do 15 or 30 minute increments and stick with it.
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    Fyrrys 33 min. ago edited 9 min. ago That was definitely the manager trying to force him to do unpaid work, good job from your husband Edit: husband, not dad
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    Familiar-Ostrich537 1 hr. ago Pure Gold! Wish I had an award for him! Vote Reply Share Loose_Alternative 990 OP 1 hr. ago Thanks. I'm so proud of him.
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    guestername 33 min. ago that story about the husband getting one over on his manager by strictly followin the rules remds me of the time i had to deal with a similarly inflexble boss who got all flustered when i played by the letter of their own policies.
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    JemmaMimic 11 min. ago I'm in a situation now where a new boss took me to task for not "staying in my lane" on projects, so now it's like "you require me to do less? You got it." I feel a little sorry for the guys this actually affects, but I didn't cause the problem and I'm fine telling them who did.

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