Company started fining employees for coming late even by a minute — ends up regretting it massively

A company unhappy with its employees logging in late to work introduced a policy where they would lose pay in 15-minute chunks. This meant if someone was 5 minutes late, it would cost them 15 minutes of pay. The policy backfired on management because almost no employees were late by less than 10 minutes. Management obviously didn't like the approach and hence came up with another strict rule: workers lose an hour's pay the moment they're late. What happened later was shared on the r/antiwork subreddit in 2021.

Just like the previous rule, this policy also backfired, and employees began logging in much later (at least 55 minutes) because the penalty was the same no matter how late they were. The company called for a meeting where people complained about the approach, saying harsh policies often lead to exploitation. "We asked how they expected people to (who, for whatever reason, were running late that day) to work for no pay, and they just shrugged," the author of the post explained. In the end, they explained that employees who knew they were late would actually slow down, relax, maybe grab a coffee, because they knew they had already lost the pay. Moving on, the author shared the overtly regressive leave policy. First, the company didn't pay employees for the first two days of sick leave, and on top, they would send an official disciplinary warning to the workers. "The problem is... Now, if I get sick and I'm off for 2 days, I might as well make the most of it," they said.

"I'm in no more trouble for being off longer; there's no maximum time. Whether it's 3 days or 18 months, I come back and get a stage 1 disciplinary. So I've done my 2 days unpaid. I'm now getting my sick pay," they added. The management once again called for a focus group, but nothing changed; they still went on with their policies, and the employees continued using them for their own good.

"Overall, the company noticed a trend of 10-15 minute lateness and 2-4 day absences, which they didn't like. After having brought in new policies to combat this, the company now has a trend of 45-55 minute lateness and 1-2 week absences," the author disclosed. In the current recessionary landscape, employees silently bear all overtly unfair rules, fearing job loss and uncertainty. A survey found that 89% of American workers have worked through a sickness, and 15% confessed they work almost every time they’re sick.

To ensure productivity, the company must provide all its employees with a healthy working environment that listens to them, supports them in times of need, and does not micromanage their every move like it's a crime. Meanwhile, reacting to the story, u/harrison_w1fe commented, "This is what happens when you try to control people. Honestly, this is how humans work. As someone who has 2 kids, if you try and make a stifling rule, humans will do everything possible to get around it." Similarly, a user, u/shylief, said, "I hate this policy c***. Humans are human. My late policy at work is odd. If I get caught up and call to tell them I'm on my way, basically the reply is, 'You might as well call in for the whole day because nobody cares; late is late.'"

Someone else, u/boniemonie, pointed out, "Whatever happens, as a rule, it’s always in the company’s favor. One minute late equals trouble, but seven minutes overtime is normal or to be expected." Another user who goes by u/colondollarcolon on Reddit said, "This is what happens when management focuses on the small, minor s*** and turns it into some monumental nothing. It was not really an issue, but someone in management got triggered and had to make it into something. That idiot in management had too much time and too little work to focus on small, petty s***."