Gen Z employee blasted for refusing to attend 8 am meeting: ‘I have to work out’

An employee refusing to attend an 8 am meeting has sparked a discussion on office etiquette

A podcast episode has sparked a heated debate on whether employees should prioritise work over personal plans. The episode from Natalie Marie and Ross Pomerantz's Demoted podcast went viral earlier this month after the hosts slammed an unnamed employee who refused to attend an 8 am meeting citing a workout class.

The hosts were discussing an email sent in by a listener who complained about their employee refusing to attend a morning meeting. The annoyed employer wrote to Natalie Marie and Ross Pomerantz to ask whether the employee in question should be “allowed” to skip the 8 am meeting for a workout class.

“When asked to come in for an 8am meeting, my Gen Z new hire said, 'Ugh sorry, can't make it I have a workout class'. Should this be allowed?” the email read.

Both Marie and Pomerantz had strong opinions on the subject.

“You just started this job. I don’t give a flying s*** about your workout class. Also, an 8 am workout class is too late. Work out at six, maybe seven,” Marie said.

“To monopolize your calendar for things that I would consider to be personal time, that’s gonna be a ‘no’ for me dog. You’re going to have to give up some things,” Pomerantz agreed.

The discussion was posted on TikTok where it quickly went viral last week, sparking a larger debate on work ethics. While some agreed with the podcast host and the boss who first asked the question, others said the Gen Z employee had no obligation to work outside of office hours.

TikTok user Alexandre Evidente joined the discussion with his own video which went viral with over 34 million views. Evidente asked whether the employee’s office would compensate her for the cost of the missed workout class, given that she was scheduled to work from 9 am to 5 pm.