Boss berates stellar employee for leaving at 4:55, says 'optics matter': 'I've never missed a deadline'

JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor

Jun 28, 2026 10:00 AM EDT

Should it matter if you leave work 5 minutes early?

When you have a salaried job, it might mean that your working hours are somewhat flexible. They don't own you hourly, but they probably have expectations of when you're going to be working and available, especially if you work in an office. This is a pretty normal thing to expect, especially if it's from 9-5. Those are tried and true working hours, and many folks have had decades of learning how to deal with this time structure. Unfortunately, that means that much of the working world is running on the same schedule. That makes commute times go up, lunch places get crowded, and everything a little more competitive. If you can fudge your hours just a hair in either direction, it might make your life that much more frictionless. But employers don't always like that. This one in a story posted to the career guidance subreddit sure didn't. They wanted their employees to all be on the same page, no matter what. The employee in question, though, didn't quite think that was fair. The way they saw it, they were arriving at work early, getting things done, and leaving just before everyone else did. The way their employer saw it, they were sending a bad message to the rest of their colleagues. But the employee in this story didn't see how that was her problem. After all, she wasn't the one falling behind. Her coworker was.

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An employee walks out of work and hails a taxi
My manager told me "optics matter" because I leave five minutes early?

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Commenters couldn't quite decide who was in the wrong here. Some sided with the manager, wondering why it was so important that she leave 5 minutes early. Others empathize with the feeling. Generally, though, we all surrender so much of ourselves for our jobs. We're allowed to draw the line in the sand every now and again and take back some of our time. Or are we? It ultimately depends on how important the job is to you and what kind of impression you want to make on your manager. Keep scrolling for the full story and let us know what you think.
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A worker sits at a desk while employees walk around her
Commenters gave their varied opinions and takes.

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