An Indian worker has caused outrage on the internet after posting screenshots of messages from their boss scolding employees for taking additional breaks—down to even going to the bathroom. In a Reddit post that went viral, the worker exposed their boss's micromanaging of break time, such as scolding one employee for taking 25 minutes over the 60-minute total break allowance. 

The manager's no-nonsense approach to break times was made explicit through a series of office group messages. From the screenshots, the manager told employees that any break taken, be it for a quick snack or a trip to the restroom, would have to be deducted from the overall 60 minutes of break time the entire day allowed.

“When you guys take a break for 10-15 min, you need to take the next break [keeping in mind the total] 60 minutes - (minus) previous break. The total break in a day should not be more than 60 minutes. Hope that’s okay right,” the manager wrote.

Perhaps the biggest surprise in the screenshots was when an employee was scolded for staying off the clock by 27 minutes past the amount of time granted for a break. The worker explained that because they had to call the manager for each of their breaks, including bathroom visits, it took them over 60 minutes in total.

“Yesterday, how much break did you take? Count and let me know,” the manager demanded

Another worker asked for a 10-minute additional break to go to the bathroom, but the manager was not sympathetic: “No, the official break is 60 minutes. That’s all. Let’s stick to that. I can’t change that. Bye, no further messages,” was the response.

The post gained popularity very fast on social media, with people complaining about the strict break time regulations. People condemned the actions of the manager, with some even referring to the office setting as being like a school.

“I will never understand the company’s obsession with a strict break time. What do they want to achieve with this? If someone completes their work of the day within 3/4 hours, what are they supposed to do for the next 6/5 hours?” one user commented.

One commenter noted, “This seems like you are back to school where one has to take permission to go to restrooms. Even schools seem better now.”

Others were critical of the larger issue of micromanaging in the office, with one commenter noting that senior managers already have plenty of work to do without paying attention to every break minute of their staff.

“The boss is micromanaging things, making working conditions even worse. Generally, people at such senior positions have so much work, they don’t care if you take some extra break,” the user wrote.

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