Employee refuses to be not paid for their hour-long lunch break in an 8-5 office job

Unpaid lunches have always been a significant problem in the workplace, impacting an employee's financial well-being unnecessarily. As breaks go unpaid, workers tend to become more stressed, affecting morale and job satisfaction. It highlights the urgent need for fair compensation and the issue of a healthy balance between productivity and employee welfare. Reddit user u/ftp67 lamented about how most employers refused to pay for an hour-long lunch break.

In the post, the individual talks about how they have always worked 9-to-5 jobs. They write, "With remote, I had work calls much later at night sometimes but at least I had flexibility during the day." The individual went through a considerably rough patch over the previous six months trying to find work. They talk about how they sent over 1,000 applications and only heard back from employers once they began lying about their resumes.

During this experience, the individual observed that a lot of companies were giving very meager rates for working from 8 to 5. They got tired of seeing this and asked the recruiter, "Is this nine billable hours?" Recruiters often got quite offended about this and replied, "No, hour lunch break, 8 hours, etc." The individual ranted about how companies were obligated to pay for the time that they were occupied and that they did not care for the hour-long lunch break.

They write, "I'm not working 45 hours a week, which is what that is." Furthermore, since the individual worked with automatic processes, there was no need for a significant daily commitment. They conclude the post, saying, "You want me to work 8-to-5 pm? You pay for overtime." After reading many comments, the individual made an edit to the post about how this issue was something workers' unions fought for a century ago.

They write, "You should be paid for time you cannot use on your own." They talk about how someone would waste time if they took an hour off during a working day to go to the gym or while making an appointment. The individual also adds how most people could finish their meal in just 15 minutes while sitting at their desks, still attending calls and doing work. They say, "Nobody is working, constantly busy, for eight hours a day in an office job." The individual's thoughts resonated with other people and they shared the same in the comments section.

u/SlumD0gPhillionaire said, "Yeah, I’ve only experienced the 8-5 bulls*** with an unpaid lunch. The lunch hour is definitely not 'your time'. If I’m WFH, sure I can do chores, take care of personal business, walk the dog, etc. but when you’re tethered to an office, that hour is super restricted and should be paid." u/fandoms_addict said, "I work a 9-to-5 job and as long as I don't leave the office, I get a 30-minute paid lunch. These companies that require a one-hour unpaid lunch are so full of c**p." u/joopityjoop pointed out, "The hour break (or however long it is) is because of state law. Not the employer. If it was up to the employer, you'd have no break."