Today my boss sent me an email about how I need to reach out to her and request her permission to use the bathroom before I step away from my desk and if I don’t then I will be subject to punishment.
For some back story, I work from home for a Fortune 500 company that pulls in $287 billion annually. I went into an “unavailable” status yesterday to use the bathroom. My boss was out of office as I was working late. I do non-phone work for the most part. It wasn’t anything more than 3 minutes but apparently it jeopardizes the entire company and my job as it is considered “work avoidance.”
For even further back story, a few months ago I was going to the bathroom while in an available status but the hiccup with that is if I had a case assigned to me that would sit for 2 – 3 minutes without grabbing it, I would get questioned and disciplined since we are supposed to reply within 1 minute of receiving a case.
So I’m damned if I do/damned if I don’t.
She fully expects me to text/call her when she is out of office to ask her for permission to step away and use the restroom and while she is in office, I am supposed to message her on teams. Which I do not mind doing, but asking her via phone when she is out of office is really upsetting and seems like a power trip. I find this exchange and request highly inappropriate.
What should I do?