Boss Sends Backlogged Emails at 3:30 Thursdays, Blaming a “Mysterious Glitch”
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19
Boss Sends Backlogged Emails at 3:30 Thursdays, Blaming a “Mysterious Glitch”
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19
Summary
Exactly 3:30 p.m. on Thursdays, one manager’s long-delayed replies arrive in batches after sitting unanswered for days or weeks, according to a workplace advice query.
The boss says a recurring email glitch delays some messages before releasing them all at once, but the employee who wrote in suspects she is scheduling old replies to mask chronic disorganization.
Workplace columnist “Work Friend” called the behavior unprofessional and advised staff to address the operational impact first—missed work and delayed communication—rather than trying to prove deception.
If the delays are damaging careers or deadlines, the advice escalates to taking the issue to the boss’s own supervisors, framing it as a problem affecting office operations.