Sharing a work refrigerator isn’t always easy.
Oftentimes, there is never enough space.
Also, people can tend to forget they have food stored.
And once forgotten, it goes rotten.
Rotting food can cause a lot of office friction.
Redditor Southern_Macaron_496 wanted to discuss their experience and get some feedback, so naturally, they came to the “Am I The A**hole” (AITA) subreddit.
They asked:
“AITA for ‘calling out’ a coworker’s kimchi in the office fridge?”
The Original Poster (OP) explained:
“Straight to it: My colleagues and I share an office fridge, and there have rarely been any issues up until recently.”
“A coworker brought in, a few days ago, a bag of kimchi – it is not homemade, as it is stored in the bag it is sold in, one that my coworker has then closed with a little claw clip thingy.”
“You know, those things they sell at IKEA?”
“It will be relevant, as well; it is not hermetic at all.”
“Now, to preface: I have nothing against ‘cultural’ foods (because this is what I’ve been getting in terms of criticism), and I absolutely love Korean food, Kimchi included.”
“The issue is that that godforsaken Kimchi bag has been in the fridge for about a week, and the fridge now reeks of kimchi –normally an issue I can deal with, except now the taste has started to ‘get into’ other foods stored there.”
“If you know what I mean?”
“I have a couple of kiwis in there, who now vaguely taste like kimchi.”
“Same for my sandwiches, and the cold brew that I make; worst of all, it’s gotten into the fancy butter that I like to keep there.”
“Hence, I put a post-it note on the fridge: ‘Can the person who brought in the kimchi eat it/throw it/store it better, as it is now causing odor and taste problems for other items in the fridge. Thank you.'”
“I tried to be straightforward and neutral, describing a problem so it could be fixed.”
“I’ve now been accused of being culturally insensitive, disrespecting my coworker’s origins, and making her feel bad/put on the spot (she is Korean, but I never assumed she was the one who had brought the kimchi in and never targeted her directly).”
“Again, I had truly no bad intentions behind it.”
“A few years ago, we had a similar issue with a very stinky cheese (the office is in France), someone put up a similar post-it, and it was swiftly dealt with, no issues.”
“I think I am not the a**hole, but some people in the office are saying I should apologize to her and that I was in the wrong.”
The OP was left to wonder:
“So… AITA?”
Redditors shared their thoughts on this matter and weighed in on some options to the question:
- NTA – Not The A**hole
- YTA – You’re The A**hole
- NAH – No A**holes Here
- ESH – Everyone Sucks Here
Redditors declared that OP was NOT the A**hole.
“NTA. The same thing happened in my work.”
“Fortunately, we had a Korean coworker who diffused the thing.”
“She had no problem telling a coworker to remove their kimchi.”
“She was quite annoyed and described how normally there are special airtight containers used, if not a completely separate refrigerator for kimchi.”
“No one has a right to stink up the fridge in the workplace.” ~ Current-Lobster-5063
“As a Korean, can confirm.”
“Most families have their own kimchi recipes and have their own fridge dedicated to storing kimchi because it is so pungent, and the smell and flavor leak into everything.”
“It’s like how you have to store peppermint separately or else everything tastes and smells like mint.”
“It’d be hilarious if someone brought in a separate mini fridge and labelled it as ‘the kimchi fridge,’ but that’d probably get seen as ‘culturally insensitive’ when in reality it would be literally the exact opposite. NTA.” ~ pianomasian
“I kept kimchi in an airtight bottle.”
“I even kept durian, wrapped and airtight, and I ate that outdoors.”
“No one was the wiser.”
“NTA. I’d put other stuff in there, and none of it got smelly.”
“Other folks used airtight stuff as well.”
“Lotsa lock and lock in the refrigerator.” ~ tango421
“I dealt with this sophomore year of college, I couldn’t put anything in the fridge because it would just taste like my roommates’ (they were twins and we were in a suite with one other girl) kimchi.”
“Then their mom came to visit and scolded them for not using the separate kimchi fridge she had given them, apparently, they were using it for drinks in their room instead.” ~ aburke626
“NTA. A week? No, no, no.”
“In fairness, most places I’ve been, the fridge is ruthlessly emptied every week anyway.” ~ death_by_chocolate
“NTA, I have kimchi in my fridge, but it’s in a kimchi container to prevent this from happening.”
“There is a reason that many households in Korea have either a kimchi fridge or kimchi drawers in their fridges.” ~ Killjoycourt
“I’m white, but I made kimchi and stored it in the family fridge over a decade ago, and they STILL bring up how the smell permeated the fridge.”
“I absolutely love kimchi, but it can leave a smell.” ~ Brodiferus
“NTA- your co-workers are just jumping at the chance to virtue signal.”
“To some people, you’re not allowed to express any negativity towards someone with a different culture or some form of minority.”
“Even though this is completely valid.”
“If your co worker was white, no one would be complaining about what you said, no matter what food item was in the fridge.” ~ yeeticusprime1
“Being a minority doesn’t mean you get to be disrespectful to your coworkers, especially since other Koreans in the comments have mentioned that this is not how kimchi is stored.”
“It was ruining other coworkers’ food.”
“That’s the disrespect.”
“She behaved poorly and got called out on that poor behavior.”
“End of story. NTA.” ~ KohShiki
“NTA. I also love kimchi, but I keep it in a jar with a tightly sealed lid.”
“Leaving it in a bag and letting the smell permeate throughout the fridge is highly inconsiderate.” ~ EnFiPs
“NTA. However, over the last week, could you not have found out who owns the kimchi and talk to them?”
“Most people are more receptive to a conversation than being called out with a note.” ~ I_am_legend-ary
“NTA. Yeah, this is some virtue signalling all right – stinky food, no matter where it comes from, should be specially handled in shared spaces.”
“And I hate people who don’t.”
“I avoid fish for office lunch, I don’t keep open sauerkraut, which also has a VERY distinct smell (which my husband hates).”
“I often make kimchi, and it has never stunk for me, but I imagine it can, if kept openly.”
“But I also would never take work and leave there for a week.” ~ Himeera
“NTA… I don’t care what ethnicity you are, stinky food in the fridge or microwave is rude and gross.”
“We once had a coworker heat leftover fish, yeah, fish in the microwave, the whole office smelled, the microwave was stuck for weeks.”
“That’s the day I politely told her, please don’t do that again, it is disgusting and rude.”
“She was mad and mumbled under her breath for weeks about how now she can’t even eat her food (she was on some diet, so she was eating like only fish).”
“I said, unfortunately, it’s disrupting the whole office, and we have customers that’s come in here, so please don’t do it again.”
“Mind you, I work for a small family-owned company, so we have no H[uman] R[esources] or anything, we kind of just handle things ourselves because our bosses don’t like conflict, especially with the girls… hahaha.”
“Needless to say, everyone was happy I said something, and she never did it again, but she was mad at me for a while, which I didn’t care about anyway.”
“I didn’t really care for her much.”
“So you definitely are ok saying something if it’s disrupting your day and ruining your food in there.” ~ blueeyedmom80
“NTA. People need to be responsible for the food they leave in the shared fridge.”
“New rule.”
“All food must be used/removed by Friday, expect it all to be disposed of.”
“It applies equally to everyone, and there is no issue of stuff being forgotten and left to mold/rot.” ~ tvaddict70
“NTA. This has nothing to do with her being Korean; white people eat kimchi, too.”
“You just don’t leave an open bag in a fridge for so long.”
“A glass jar solves the problem.” ~ LizMixsMoker
“NTA, This is a good reason why lots of office fridges either are emptied nightly and cleaned, or it has items the company puts there for everyone.”
“Sharing a fridge is difficult with people who have varying standards of cleanliness; that’s why someone needs to set a standard before the fridge is filled with rotten food.” ~ Lambchop1975
“NTA. As soon as the Kimchi is gone, put a cup with freshly ground coffee in the fridge.”
“That will get rid of the smell.” ~ kosmokatX
“NTA. I love Kimichi.”
“But even Koreans acknowledge the smell.”
“That’s why many Korean homes have a ‘Kimchi refrigerator ‘(small one) that is used to store the fermented deliciousness.”
“There is nothing wrong with saying Kimichi stinks and separating it from the regular food.” ~ jgcrum_shanghai
“NTA. I’m Korean, and I know all too well how strong the smell of kimchi is, and your coworker would know too.”
“There’s a reason why we Koreans properly store our kimchi in air-tight containers.”
“They’re using cultural food as a shield for their lack of basic manners in using a communal fridge.” ~ HeyitsSunny17
“NTA. She’s fermenting unrest.” ~ catjaxed
Reddit is with you, OP.
It may be time to involve HR.
Dealing with it yourself could only lead to more misunderstanding.
Better to get it all out in the open and in writing.
Good Luck.