mad about lunch break..need opinions

I work 9-6... 9 hours... yesterday i was told that our lunch break was 1 hr but most pple dont take that long... today i went to lunch at 1:05 and came back at 1:55... i was told by my other supervisor--sem-nastily that lunch breaks r HALF HOUR and that i MUST TELL HER WHEN IM LEAVING OR IF FOR SOME REASON I NEED TO BE MORE THEN A 1/2 HR I NEED TO ASK HER PERMISIION.. um is this normal that u get a half hour lunch when u work a 9 hr day??? and mind u almost everyone there eats at there desk and it looks bad if u wanna go out to get food AND who can eat in 30 minutes, by the time i get food u hafta inhale it... mind u all i did was apoloigize profusely, and tell her that i was told it was 1 hr yesterday and she said im wrong... inside i was FUMING..

this made me very mad today b/c i planned on using my 1 hr lunch break to take care of some personal stuff that needs to be done miday since im not home at nite till like 730... grr im soo royally p-off

Message edited 10/25/2005 10:03:51 PM.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Unfortunately if everyone else eats at their desk... you will be the odd man out by leaving for an hour lunch.

Legally... you are supposed to get an hour.

But in the job reality world... there isn't much you can do. You can take your hour... but you may be at the mercy of your boss and they frown upon it if everyone else eats in the office.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Actually... now that I think about it... legally you are only supposed to get a half hour unpaid lunch.

You should be paid for any time afterwards. So if you work 9 hours and take a half hour lunch... you get paid for 8.5 hours. If company policy is an hour lunch... you get paid for 8 hours.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

thanks rich question tho.. since i get paid annually it doesnt matter if i work, 8, 9, 10 a billion hrs its the same money right? f*cking corporate work place loopholes

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Posted by muchinluvmichi

thanks rich question tho.. since i get paid annually it doesnt matter if i work, 8, 9, 10 a billion hrs its the same money right? f*cking corporate work place loopholes

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Michi, and I say this with love, but you have just learned your first lesson about corporate America. This is how it is. In my company and in most companies, we don't get formal lunch breaks. That's not to say that you can't run out and do errands or grab lunch if need be, but it's pretty much standard procedure and courtesy to let people know when you are going to be out of the office. Mostly everyone grabs lunch quickly and eats at their desk.

I agree with Rich on this, this is the corporate world, we're all whores. They all want blood and give us little back. Very Very few companies give formal lunch breaks anymore, and even less pay for overtime. So, whether you work 9 or 15 hours, you're salaried, it's not different.

Welcome to private industry

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Oh god...you just gave me a flashback...In February i decided to leave my job where i worked 8 hours, got a full hour lunch, we got to leave early once in a while,very casual, etc.
THen i went to this place where i worked 9 hours, and for the first couple of days, i dont even think i ate lunch!!!! Everyone else sat at their desks and ate, and i'm thinking f** this, i'm going out! So i asked my boss what time i should take lunch and he told me..but everytime it was time to go everyone would look at me like i was a criminal or something!!! It was so uncomfortable.
Well, it turns out this place was not the place for me..not for this reason, but this didn't help, and i quit after 3 weeks..
Maybe you could bring lunch with you,eat it at your desk and then go out for a 1/2 hour?

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Don and karen, thanks for the advice, def appreciated, i agree don, this is the corporate world and thats y in my own mind i think its bs and the pple who sit there like good little soldiers can kiss my a$$..of course i will only take my 30 minutes as im allowed yet in my mind i think its disgusting to treat pple that way, karen, im sorry about ur past experience, i def. will do just that..eat at my desk and then maybe go run some errands for 15 minutes or so..its just totally ridiculous in my mind that pple **** up so much that they will sit at there desk for 9,10,11 hrs just to "look good" to the boss ya know.. i for one cant sit for 9 straight hrs with some kind of movement.. grrrr

thanks guys, at least I kno Im not alone lol

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Oh the dreaded 1/2 hour lunch break! I have come to realize by the time I hop in my car, drive to the store I need to run my errands is about when I should be turning around. Mind you, I still haven't done my errands or eaten yet. I just drove there (usually it's just to CVS).
I try to bring my lunch with me and I do walk away from my desk everyday just to eat in peace and quiet. We all bi!ch about it every day since that's about all we really can do

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

i've seen lunch hours vary...30 min, 45 min, 1 hour. nobody says u can't go out to do errands on your lunch hour.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Posted by bklyngirl

i've seen lunch hours vary...30 min, 45 min, 1 hour. nobody says u can't go out to do errands on your lunch hour.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

michi, best of luck and i agree with you, it is stupid and i hate it too, but it's the nature of the beast. No one is taking lunch anymore and the name of the game in private industry is to "look good" and kiss a$$.

Hey, maybe these experiences are teaching you that the corporate scene is not for you. Maybe you need something like sales, promotion or event planning where you are not always in the same place for 9 hours a day, where'd you get to travel to visit clients.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

I believe in the 1 hour lunch, you do need a break!!! But, I eat at my desk, I take 10 min, or 20 min....read a few pages in my book or look at the paper...but...there are days I do take 1 hour or 2 hours. My boss and I have gotten to a happy understanding about all this. I am there for him, I take my lunch after his so I can cover his phone calls, I do it happily-----b/c when he gets back he might be on his own for an hour, or not. It's give and take and I think you need to figure out what works for you and your boss. When he is out he'll tell me to come in late/leave early or take the 2 hour lunch. And there are days when he goes out to lunch for HOURS and comes back a bit buzzed.....Its a give and take and communication.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

I always have to feel out the day. Sometimes it would be absurd for me to go to lunch, other days are fine. I really can't plan ahead at all.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

When I worked on Wall Street even a 10 minute lunch break was met with disapproval. I had to tell them when I went to the bathroom! And I never had time to get lunch outside of the building, only to run downstairs to the cafeteria. I've got to say, that's why I really do appreciate my job now. The corporate culture was not for me. Now I eat at my desk and shop during lunch every day.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

At my company everybody takes at least an hour lunch break....it's just the culture. Also at 5pm everyone is out the door...the cleaning people are already emptying garbages. They just pride themselves on a excellent work/life balance.

I think it has to do with the type of work you do and the type of business you are supporting.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Different companies have different policies. I don't see why if an hour lunch is alloted why you shouldn't be able to take it. If it's 'preferred' that you don't, then that should have been made more clear when your schedule was discussed. I don't see anything wrong with running errands & picking up something and going back to your desk to eat after you are out for 30 minutes. So maybe you take an hour to do the whole lunch thing, but you are accessible for half of it. There was no reason for your boss to be nasty about it..it was only your 2nd day.

Letting your boss know you wont be at your desk for a length of time is a reasonable request...I asked my boss to let me know when he was leaving the office when I used to screen his calls...it makes things easier all around.

good luck.

Message edited 10/26/2005 11:12:31 AM.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

I am sorry that happened. I feel your frustration. I work in a corporate environment and I take lunch whenever I want, sometimes even 1 hour and 15 minutes and no one says anything. So all workplaces are NOT like that.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

DH's company provides breakfast and lunch. He can run out and get something nearby, but nobody eats out unless it's a meeting. Everyone eats at their desk. My brother asked DH if he has a bucket next to his chair or if he's allowed to get up to go to the bathroom. LOL.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Legally I think your suppose to get an hour lunch. You need to follow the protocol of your office though. If everyone stays in they it might be best to stay in too.

At my job we never go out to lunch. I am lucky if i have time to go and grab a sandwich or order something in and I work from 7 am to 6-6:30 pm or later every day.

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

I work for a small company- very small- I often times eat at my desk b/c it is too much for one of us to be out too long- some days it is slow and I do go out for a while...
It is give and take, and it's just a crap job market right now- so it's hard right now to rock the boat, you know?

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Unfortunately if you are salaried/exempt a half- hour lunch is legal- but it *****!!

Re: mad about lunch break..need opinions

Michelle,

That really s u x!! I have a few friends who work in the City and I always envied them b/c they had very lenient bosses. They could come into work at least by 10 or earlier, just as long as you work your hours and they have an hour lunch. I always thought that was the norm of Manhattan Jobs. I guess I was wrong!

Other than the whole lunch thingy, How do you like your job?