My coworkers started charging a 'cancellation fee' for our group lunches.
By @benagain · Work
What began as a casual way for our team to socialize is now governed by a shared spreadsheet and a $5 penalty for backing out within 24 hours. I think it's absurd, but the ringleader is treating it like a quarterly business review.
The full story
I work in a pretty standard corporate environment, and to keep some social connection, a group of about ten of us started doing a weekly lunch out. It was great. Someone would just pick a place, send an email, and we'd go. But one guy on our team is... let's say, 'process-oriented.' He loves spreadsheets. He decided to 'optimize' our lunch club. First, it was a spreadsheet to vote on restaurants. Fine. Then it was a tab to track attendance. A little weird, but whatever. The problem started when he'd make a reservation for 10 people and only 7 would show up. He felt it was disrespectful to the restaurant and made him look bad. Fair enough. His solution? A new policy. If you RSVP 'Yes' on the spreadsheet, you are committed. If you cancel with less than 24 hours' notice, you owe $5 to the 'Lunch Club Fund,' which is used to cover appetizers at the next outing. He was dead serious. He announced it in a meeting he scheduled about it. I thought it was a joke until last week. I got pulled into a last-minute mandatory meeting and had to miss lunch. I updated the spreadsheet and sent a message to the group chat. Next thing I know, my name is on his spreadsheet's 'Debtors' tab. I've been reminded twice that I have an outstanding balance. It feels less like a fun break with friends and more like another form of project management. I'm refusing to pay out of principle, and now it's become this weirdly tense cold war in the office.
How people voted
- Side A — 32% (83 votes)
- Both — 40% (102 votes)
- Side B — 28% (71 votes)
Readers are split: “Both” leads with 40% — 256 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@edielately — I have a feeling people were constantly bailing on reservations for this to become a thing.
@ezra — bruh
@cantbelieveit — I'm on your side. What started as a fun social thing has been turned into another work task, that's so frustrating.
@gabeish — you should invoice him for the time you spent reading his spreadsheet
@quinnsorta — Can't wait for the Q3 lunch performance review.
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