Being late for work - is it acceptable these days?

Not even sick Zeb, just not organised child care.

I'm always in work early, and start as soon as I get in.

When my son was younger and we had to wait until he walked into class, my hours were 9.15-2.15 - even though I probably could have got in by 9, I made sure I had 10 minutes leeway, and more often than not was in by 9am - never late.

Now we don't have to wait in the playground, my hours have changed to 9-2, and I am always in by 8.50 at the latest.

It's probably easier in a way for me, as I have to get my son to school before work, so don't have the opportunity to run late.

It works for us, but then we have a small team, and everyone has such a clearly-defined job that it would be blindingly obvious not only if someone wasn't pulling their weight but precisely who that person was and how much weight they weren't pulling.

And we've all worked together for years (I don't think anyone has been with us for less than two years, and most of us are part of the original 2002 team when the project was first launched, so we have a strong proprietorial interest in what we do), get on very well, respect each other's abilities and - crucially - trust each other.

But I'm well aware that this is an ideal situation that's most unlikely to be duplicated in too many other places!

Where I work lateness was such a problem that they introduced clocking in for the staff. It's a bit annoying that a few individuals wandering in when ever they feel like it means that we all have to remember to swipe in each morning, and at the end of lunch. We do get an extra £10 a week 'bonus' if we're here on time for the entire week though ?

Crumbs, I'm a bit gobsmacked by some of the lax attitudes towards punctuality. I had assumed from my Civil Service cocoon that time-keeping in 'the real world' was probably fairly strict. For example, if a company has set business hours of 9-5, I'd expect to be able to speak to whomever I needed to speak to if I rang at 9, not to be told "Oh, he/she will probably be in in about 20 minutes".

Punctuality in my current job is essential as there is a handover by the previous shift and to be late would mean making them stay late. My shifts start on the hour and my team are all in 5 to 10 minutes before that so they are ready to take over promptly with no discernible break in service to customers. I try to allow an extra 10-15 minutes for unforeseen circumstances on the way to work so I usually have time to go and make a coffee before taking the handover. It's all about respect for your colleagues and your employer, and a matter of pride on your own part, surely?

In these uncertain economic times, I would have thought that the people who come across as not caring about their jobs as much as the person sitting next to them are probably first in line for the door.

I'd love to have a clock machine here - it would serve the lazy feckers right. Needless to say, my boss is vociferously against it!

In a situation like that, absolutely yes - as I said, I've fired two people for persistent lateness in situations where it was important that they turn up on time.

On the other hand, my present job isn't customer-facing and primarily involves meeting regular deadlines - so it doesn't actually matter whether I do the work during normal office hours or late at night or weekends, provided it gets done.

I am pleased someone has done this thread. our hrs are 9-5.

we have a newish person been here 2 months. comes in at 9.15-20 every, day faffs about making tea etc and will probably start work at 9.45ish.

he then goes to move his car if its in a restricted area (because he is late misses out on company spaces) he moves the car to the local sainsburys and whilst there pops in and gets his lunch. comes back and makes more tea. then at 12.00 on the dot he will eat his sandwiches and browse the net, come 1.00 he will go out for an hour.

after lunch he will come back make tea and probably start work for about 1.15-.120 he also spends various amounts of time wandering around the office or generally just disappears within our building.

come 5 on the dot he is off home!!!

i am usually here about 8.45ish and very rarely go for lunch as we work in a bit of a isolated area so leave at about 5.10. also if i had started a new job i would be petrified of taking the mick during my probation period.

the bloke is so lax about the whole thing and it does have a very detrimental effect on the rest of the team as they put in the hours and he doesnt.

trouble is our manager just wants an easy life so said person gets away with it.

I always thought it was normal to work longer than your contracted hours. H is contracted for 37.5 hours per week but works more like 60 plus (IT, no overtime or in lieu time in his current role; it's just what you have to do to get the job done). I work 11-2.30 which is really 10.30 to 3.

I'd feel awful if I were late even once, let alone habitually.

My H works as an operations manager for an engineering firm and those working on the shop floor have to be on time. H has given warnings for consistent lateness without valid excuses. They have a clocking in system, so it's all recorded anyway. They work shifts: 7am-3pm, 3pm-11pm and 11pm-7am, on a 3 weekly rota, and H is expected to be there 30 minutes before and after each shift for handovers, team meetings etc. He gets paid overtime though.

As for me, it's a long time since I worked, 2 years now, but I used to hate being late and my employers expected me to be on time. I worked part time in a shop and worked 8.45-5.45 Mondays, 10.30-4.30 Thursday-Saturday. There aren't many buses inot town from the village. The early morning one gets in at 8.45 and the next one gets in at 10.30, and yet for the first year I worked there I got the 8.45 one whatever day I worked, because invariably the bus would be late and then I would be late.

It's no good blaming public transport though, so I'd just get the early one, wander round town for a bit, do some shopping or go to the library and then turn up for work on time. On the rare occasion I needed to get the later bus I'd call them to let them know I might be a few minutes late and then I'd always work over to cover the time.

It was only when I was pregnant and I was exhausted that I asked if they minded me getting the later bus and working over. Thankfully they didn't mind! Even now when time keeping isn't so important I hate being late to meet friends. I think it is bad manners and shows a lack of respect for the other person's time.

Unless, as others have said, the job is flexible and they are working extra hours to cover it or having a shorter lunch. I don't think it's acceptable to just turn up late for no other reason than bad time management in the mornings.

when i got this job the HR lady said that there could be occaisions where you may have to work over, unpaid, for up to half an hour. a whole half an hour? i looked at her like she was barking ?

I can't believe the attitudes towards lateness. If you have fixed hours then you have fixed hours. If you have flexitime you have flexitime but you should still be working your hours over the week. In roles where you have to cover the phones etc if you're late it's not fair on your other colleagues, let alone your customers.

I'm struggling to get in on time at the moment but that's because we've just moved office and it's a longer walk and I'm unfit and struggle with it. Having said that I'm managing it though because I have to. If I could drop A off earlier to give me an extra few minutes leeway I would but I can't.

Caz, what's his job role?

I've found that in the places I've worked in NYC, hours have been very relaxed but the last place I worked it was far too relaxed. I always managed to make it in on time but my supervisor was DREADFUL. She would show up hours late, especially, it seemed, when she had scheduled an appointment. So I'd be sat there with someone, trying to make excuses for her and frantically trying to find her without letting them know she just hadn't shown up. It was excrutiating when she'd arrive and tell them she needed to do some things first before seeing them. She'd always saunter in with shopping bags too. I never understood how she managed to keep her job.

I think it depends to some degree on the nature of the work, when I worked for a publisher for instance the sales bods kept, more or less, their own hours. Sure, they'd get a sarky "Afternoon!" when they rolled in but as long as they hit targets nobody cared, least of all me.

I'd just like to defend those who said they are bad at mornings. My h is very much an owl and really struggles with mornings. This is becuase he can not actually get to sleep until well after 3 am and we have tried everything to change his body clock. Luckily he works from home so he drags himself out of bed just before 9 and has anadin for breakfast but once a month they make him travel a couple of hundred miles to the office which I always worry about as he will have only had about 3 hours sleep maximum (this actually makes me mad as he doesn't do anything productive whilst he there as his development machine is at home). Unfortunately most working days don't allow for owl's but he would be far more prductive if he could work later in the day.(https://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/mg19325955.400-lack-of-sleep-hits-night-owls-hard.html/)

I however am a lark so am always in before 08:30 when our core hours are 10:00 - 16:00.

I suspect my boss isn't especially good at mornings, as he's rarely in before 11.

Doesn't bother me one iota, especially as I get two interruption-free hours first thing every day as I'm in at 9!

Exactly the same as mine. business manager - client relationship managment for an insurer

I am always early, often work through my lunch, but leave 5 mins early to beat rush so I can pick my son up. I have agreed it with my boss though. I had lateness as a rule not just for work but for everything.

What's ironic is everyone posting on this thread who's employed and should be working ?

Zooropa - my H is an owl too, which is probably why he doesn't mind night shift and back shift as much as his early shift, but he still drags himself out of bed at 6am to get to work on time, poor bloke. I'm a lark and prefer early mornings. I'm much more productive early in the day.

I think it all depends. I have had a couple of jobs, including my last one, where hours were totally flaxible and nobody kept a check on when you started or finished. I would arrive any time up till 10am some days, but usually worked till about 5:20pm whereas others left at 4pm and started earlier. I suppose technically I wasn't 'late' because I had no set hours!

I think if your managers or colleagues are affected by you being late though, or if it's expected that you arrive at a certain time then its a bit different. Occasional lateness is bound to happen though due to traffic jams, train delays, over-sleeping or whatever.

not me. i'm a shift worker ?

I was always about 15 mins late for work at my last job.

Without fail, I had to stay an extra 45 mins on most days, and an extra 1 1/2 hrs on Fridays because I had to wait on other people to come on shift to get the information I needed to do my job. Those 15 mins made a huge difference to me in the mornings. Sticking to my contracted hours would have been a disaster as things would have been missed (most of the events I had to check over would have finished by my official start time).

I had my phone diverted to my mobile when I wasn't in the office and could be called at anytime. As everyone else said, it depends on the role and what is required of you, but sometimes it works. Clearly not in the OP though

My employees contract states something like we will set their hours, but they may from time to time be expected to work for longer. I would not look kindly on someone who 'worked to rule' and left at their finish time on the dot just because I expected them to be at work at their start time on the dot. Somehow, it just doesn't work like that.

When I was gainfully employed, it was in an accounting environment - you got their early and at month end you stayed until everything was finished. Not leave at 5pm because your employer had the cheek to expect you to be at your desk by 9.

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I'm not meant to be working either....day off. Don't hitch from work anymore either, too busy in and out of the lovely surgery

I hate lateness with a passion I find it unbearably rude be it for work, an appointment or just meeting friends. Obviously there are occations where it is unavoidable but I will always ring and appologise. my brother and his gf are always without fail late and it really irks me - is my time so unimportant that I can be left hanging around for them?

I am also really pants in the morning but still managed to get my 2 kids to their respective schools which are in opposite dirrections and get myself to work on time.

My manager is also really flexible but I take this as a reason NOT to take the mick out of her good nature.

I don't like lateness but it seems to be the norm among the people I work with! We have a team meeting every Monday at 10am, and it rarely starts before 11! And thats after we've phoned round to get people out of bed!! We don't work 9-5, but as long as people work their hours its fine. What does annoy me is some of my colleagues who are paid to work full time and work half or less of their hours, especially as there is so much work to be done. Thats the joy of having a totally incompatant manager though I guess!

I do think it's partly a generational thing.

When I ran a department, I was one of the older ones at 30. It was quite hard at times to get everyone in on time. I used to have to give gentle (or not so gentle) reminders sporadically that rocking up half an hour after you were supposed to be at your desk was a bit of a problem.

It didn't used to matter so much in the 'old days' as we all worked on into the evenings (and wee small hours) but I did notice a general shift in the younger ones to be ever so punctual when it came to 6pm and they wanted to leave, but not when they were supposed to start work at 9.30! Used to be a bit of a pest as I'd been in since 7.30am and by 9.30 I was quite keen to start meetings etc and get on with it all, especially as we were 'behind schedule' as a department generally.

Most people were cool if you gave them a reminder, though.

Nowadays (well, prior to mat leave) I'm easily the first in in my department. It's like a ghost town when I get in!

we supposedly work 9-5 but no one else does (media). I get in just before 9 and I leave at 4.50pm - like Crantock I had to fight hard to get 'flexible hours' and I work on the journey home, so I add another hour or so to my working day at least (get in at 6.30pm) and I make up the hours in the evening if I have to.

I'm lucky if the others get in before 10am, they do stay til 6 but as I said, I work longer hours than them. and I do get the 'part timer' attitude a bit (I don't work Fridays any more) but it doesn't really bother me too much - I know I work just as hard, if not harder, than the others anyway and so long as the bosses know that, that's all I care about.

Not me either - I'm not t work today, and I don't use the computer at work for anything other than work related matters.

Dudes, you don't actually have to justify yourselves to Nickj

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