Redditor SamsSnaps77 is in the process of relocating to a new job.
But before leaving the current job, the Redditor had a discussion with the store manager about something that alarmed fellow employees.
Wondering about a hypothetical pertaining to the situation, they visited the “Am I The A**hole” (AITA) subReddit and asked :
“WIBTA (Would I Be the A**hole?) for taking my coffee maker home?”
The Original Poster (OP) explained why this was a cause for concern for the other workers.
“I just found a new job, closer to home for more pay, and put in my notice. The people here are acting like they’ll miss me but it’s such a great opportunity that most of them are understanding and kind about it.”
“The issue I have is…I paid for nearly everything in our coffee break area out of my own pocket. The keurig, all the coffee pods, sugar, creamer…I paid for it it’s mine.”
“However it is the only working coffee pot in the building, and when joked to my store manager about, ‘What are you going to do without your morning coffee?’ Now my current coworkers are saying, ‘are you really going to steal the coffee pot when you leave?'”
“It’s not stealing, it’s mine. And it’s not cheap to replace.”
“So internet strangers…WIBTA for taking home my Keurig and coffees?”
Strangers online were asked if the OP would be deemed one of the following:
- NTA – Not the A**hole
- YTA – You’re the A**hole
- NAH – No A**holes Here
- ESH – Everybody Sucks Here
Many Redditors suggested they go ahead and abscond with their beloved coffeemaker.
“NTA, take it and run, those zombies can buy their own coffee maker.” – Imnotabadslime7
“NTA. Take it all home. In fact, take it before your last day in case someone decides to hide it from you.” – teresajs
“Definitely. Take it home today.”
“When they complain, tell them that you had paid for the coffee maker and been buying all of the pods and cream out of your own pocket. They could all take up a collection and buy their own coffee maker.”
“(BTW, my teen has a cheap knock-off pod coffee maker that cost less than $40 and works great. So, it’s not like your coworkers can’t get their own.)” – teresajs
“Go for it, it’s yours. Most likely, people will complain. Explain you paid for it. Send them to your boss/ HR. And tell them they can buy one just like you did. Not what they want to hear, feel free to let that not be your problem. Because it is not.”
“People will most likely be unhappy about it the day you leave. But in a few days (after you are gone) they either will have arranged something else or where not that much in need for it after all.”
“By the way: you might need it on the new job.” – FoldingFan1
“NTA but I hope you kept your receipts to prove it then you can ask them to buy it from you or it goes with you. I brought my extra keurig and coffee bar to a friends house for a baby shower and hostess thought I should leave it since ‘it looked so nice set up in her dining room’ I said she could if she paid for it, she didn’t reply” – Trin_42
“I’m not sure how polite I would be in my response to the co-worker.”
“Where the hell do you think the coffee maker came from, co-worker? Who the hell do you think brings in all the supplies? Who do you think has been funding your caffeine intake all this time?”
“Did any of you co-workers ever offer to chip in?”
“Seriously? Where do they think it came from. The freaking coffee fairy? She swoops down to sprinkle new coffee pods and creamers when all the little workers are home safe in their beds.”
“NTA, OP. You’ve been very very generous. Apparently you work with ingrates. No good deed goes unpunished.”
“I’d haul a** with that coffee maker and never look back.” – Advanced-Extent-420
“NTA. It’s yours. I got the same push back when I left a teaching job and all of my classroom decorations were mine. Nor were they cheap.”
“That being said if you were to want to generously gift them the machine, it’d be very nice but it’s not really nice that they expect that from you.”
“Surely they can all take up an office collection and buy a machine for the office… Or HR needs to find the funds.”
“Edit: The suggestion from others to offer them the pot at a secondhand price is a good one. Then as you move onto your better job with more pay you can buy yourself an upgrade using those funds.” – Issyswe
“A coworker (not the boss) did ask me for the reciept, but in a snarky way, like ‘prove it’s yours’ kind of way. I do still have it…I keep all my warranty stuff, but it’s not worth digging it out for that. If my boss asks I will. And I think I would take cash for it lol.” – OP
“You should dig it out anyway. It sounds more like your boss, and very likely the rest of your co-workers, believe that it was purchased by the company and not by you. I’d take it sooner rather than later, just claim you want to clean it before taking it to your new job, and have the receipt on hand if stopped or accused of stealing.”
“NTA.” – TogarSucks
“YES IT IS ABSOLUTELY WORTH DIGGING IT UP!!!!”
“This could earn you a bad reference in the future. It could even get the police involved! GET THAT RECEIPT. HAVE IT ON HAND. You need documentary evidence that it’s yours, or you could be looking at a theft charge. Your boss could even call your new place of employment and claim you were a thief, and poof there goes your new job. Common sense, dude!”
“And in the future, never and I mean never ever ever do this, ever. If you bring appliances to work keep them at your desk and unplug them on the weekend. Has it not occurred to you what might happen if, God forbid, the machine malfunctioned and someone was badly burned, or a short in the appliance caused a fire?”
“Workers’ Comp, your company’s insurer, or their landlord’s insurer would not be going ‘oh well, tee hee, no big deal’; they would go after you, and I mean for up to eight figures.” – Basic_Bichette
“NTA. I brought a monitor from home once because they were taking forever to replace one in our unit. Wrote my name on the back and took it home when I quit. Just because I had workarounds to combat the fact that dayshift never contacted IT (night shift got an ’emergency’ IT number and since there was more than 1 computer on the unit it didn’t constitute an emergency) when the original monitor started dying doesn’t mean everyone else should benefit from my supplies after I leave.”
“My coworkers told me they finally fixed it when there was a blank hole when the monitor should be.”
“Hopefully they’ll realize what a morale boost a coffee machine can be and take it upon themselves to make sure it happens. If you can find a spot in your budget to buy a machine specifically to keep at work, and time in your day specially to keep that stocked when also making sure your job gets done, there is no reason management can’t.” – WaffleMouse1992
“NTA, but this is a great lesson for your next job. If you bring personal items you’d like to keep/take when you leave but also allow others to use them make that exceedingly clear. One way is to label the items with your full name and at least two sides of the item.”
“Also, sending out an email the day you bring it in either to your boss/HR/the group would give you documentation of the event and agreed terms of shared use. Clear boundaries early helps to prevent assumptions later down the line.” –Â 311Tatertots
“NTA, but I’d recommend you let them buy it from you, and buy yourself a brand new one. Sure, they can just buy their own after you’ve left, but companies tend to be cheapskates and with it being used heavily at your old job…”
“Let’s just say that unless you/they did proper maintenance… Perhaps a harsh question, but how much longer is it going to last? Also, not really relevant to the verdict, but why did you buy one for company-use in the first place?” – Pondering-Out-Loud
Overall, Redditors were supportive of a scenario in which the OP took off with the coffee maker they purchased themselves.
In an edit, the OP gave an update and current status.
“the FM (manager I made the joke to) got her coffee this morning and said Snarky Coworker had gone to the SM, and gave me the credit card and company car to go buy a new keurig, said keep the new one and the office can have the old one.”
“Currently walking around Walmart shopping on the clock.”