Your top priority during the workday should be, of course, completing your work. But if you’ve run out of tasks to do, there’s no reason to sit around twiddling your thumbs. If you feel the temptation to go for a walk, read a book or take a quick nap, you just need to get permission from your employer…

Below, you’ll find a story that was recently shared on the Malicious Compliance subreddit, detailing how one nurse earned herself plenty of long breaks by simply working too efficiently.

After being enlisted to help with a hefty data entry project at work, this nurse began speeding through the process

Image credits: Nathan Aguirre (not the actual photo)

Until one day her boss realized that she had actually been working too quickly

Image credits: joaquincorbalan (not the actual photo)

Image credits: VampAngel247

Later, the woman responded to comments and shared additional information about the situation

Taking breaks during the workday is extremely important for employees’ health and wellbeing

To learn more about what inspired Reddit user VampAngel247 to share this story in the first place, we reached out to her, and lucky for us, she was happy to have a chat with Bored Panda. “I’m fairly new to Reddit, and I loved the sub, and this was the first thing I thought of after reading a few posts,” she shared. We were also curious what she thought of this particular job. “[It] was okay, definitely not my favorite one that I’ve ever had, but definitely also not the worst,” VampAngel247 revealed, noting that she “infinitely preferred the temporary boss to the permanent one.”

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“And I think the permanent boss knew that,” she added. “I actually cried when I found out that she would be returning because it had been so peaceful, not having to deal with her.” And as far as how she felt after receiving permission to read during the workday, the OP said, “I felt a little vindicated, and I remember going home and laughing about it, but I did not take advantage. I still probably did way more than they would have preferred, but I used the time to do school work so as to not have to do it at home.”

While many employers prioritize keeping their workers tied to their desks or posts for 8 hours a day, it’s also vital for all of us to take necessary breaks. Sure, you might not need an hour-long break to read a book when there is work to be done, but an hour for lunch, plus a few more 5-10 minute breaks throughout the day can work wonders to prevent burnout and keep us mentally and physically healthy. According to BetterUp, taking breaks improves our productivity, energy levels, ability to focus and our mental health and wellbeing. When we attempt to stay focused on one task for too long, our performance and productivity actually begin to plummet, and it can be much better to look at something with a “fresh set of eyes” after getting up to stretch, walking around or grabbing a coffee.

One survey by Tork found that 94% of employees who take breaks report that briefly stepping away from work helps them refresh their perspective, but unfortunately, there’s often pressure in the workplace to stay glued to our desks. 22% of workers admit feeling judged for taking breaks during the middle of the work day, and 39% of workers only occasionally, rarely or never take breaks. But they want to, as over 90% of workers are more likely to stay at a job where their managers encourage employees to take healthy breaks. 

Image credits: Ben White (not the actual photo)

But many people actually spend more time taking breaks than being productive during working hours

It’s helpful to know when to take breaks as well, as they can be harmful if they disrupt you in the midst of “flow state,” or when we’re working most effortlessly. But if you start to feel Zoom fatigue setting in, you’re feeling drained by working on one specific task for too long, you’re hungry and need a snack, you’re feeling frustrated or stressed and need to clear your mind, or you’re having a hard time concentrating, don’t be scared to step away for a few moments. Even social breaks, such as having a chat with your colleagues, have been found to be beneficial, as they allow us to feel closer to our coworkers and feel like we belong in our work environment.            

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So why are we sold the lie of working 8-hour shifts? Bosses often pressure us to squeeze out as much productivity as possible during those hours without allowing us to go home, even if our tasks are completed, but the fact is that very few people are actually getting work done in all of those hours. In fact, one study from VoucherCloud found that the average UK employee is only productive for about 2 hours and 53 minutes during their workday. When it comes to what they’re doing instead, these employees admitted spending time checking social media, reading the news, chatting with colleagues, making hot drinks, taking smoking breaks, texting, eating or making food, making calls to partners/friends and searching for new jobs. 

Image credits: Jonathan Sanchez (not the actual photo)

There’s no need to tether employees to their desks when all of their work is done

When asked whether these employees could actually make it through the workday without taking part in these distractions, only 35% admitted that they could. And of the 65% who couldn’t bear to make it through the day without taking breaks with these distractions, over half said that these things make the workday “more bearable,” so their productivity following these breaks was actually increased. But what about four-day work weeks? Would we still only be productive for less than half of the day if we needed to squeeze all of our work into a shorter week? Well, according to the UK-based environmental consultancy Tyler Grange, implementing a permanent four-day workweek has caused productivity to increase by 22% and absenteeism to decrease by 66%. Not to mention the fact that job applications are up by 88%, and employees have reported feeling happier and less exhausted during the week. 

We might not all have time to be reading books and taking naps during the workday, but we should prioritize taking small breaks to prevent burnout. We would love to hear your thoughts on this story of malicious compliance in the comments below, pandas. Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation at work? Then, if you’re interested in checking out another Bored Panda article discussing the importance of taking breaks during the workday, we recommend reading this story next.             

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Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)

Many readers were amused by this nurse’s story and began sharing similar tales of their own

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