The boss claimed it was because of the time wasted by the staff member, but many online felt there was a different (unspoken) reason for the upset.
"I used to have a colleague who did this and it pissed me off to no end. While she was stirring up her porridge and blowing it to cool it down, she couldn't properly perform tasks. She could only type with one hand, and often couldn't answer the phone as she was chewing.
According to one study by Tork, nearly 20 percent of North American workers worry their bosses will no longer think they are hardworking if they take regular lunch breaks, and 13 percent worry their colleagues will view them similarly.
"I'm stubborn, and it annoys me when a workplace doesn't treat people like adults. So I would probably sweetly say 'Ok that's fine, I'll take the five minutes out of my lunch hour and just have a 55-minute lunch break." Overwhelmingly however, many felt there was likely a whole other, undiscussed reason the manager didn't want breakfast heated in the office—the smell.