by Kenneth Andrews

Created on: January 14, 2010   Last Updated: February 17, 2010

The workplace can be a demanding and confusing environment. Memos, strategy documents, Big Brotheresque posters next to the water cooler, all these media are employed to convey an ever-shifting impression of your employer's expectations and demands. How are you supposed to do your job when the nature of that job keeps shifting on a monthly, weekly, even daily basis? It's hard, but there's one thing you can be sure of, right? You know what time you have to turn up, and roughly what time you can get away with leaving.

Then why is it there are some people in apparently every workplace who never seem to manage to get in on time? Working hours are usually the single clearest point on most employment contracts. But wherever you work, there will be some people drifting in up to half an hour late without a care in the world, and often without any apparent repurcussions. It's not fair on you, diligent and punctual employee who turns up at 8:55 every morning. OK, you might not actually do anything but check your email and drink coffee until 9:45, but you're there on time every day - why can't they manage it?

A few reasons, actually.

1) Morale
Some people hate their jobs. A lot of people, if they're being strictly honest. No one ever told their parents they wanted to be a Systems Analyst when they grew up. For most workers, our working day consists of an internal struggle to reconcile our crushed hopes and dreams with the need to earn enough cash to buy an XBox.

People manifest this hatred of their job and low morale in a number of ways. Most people will just be quite sarcastic, some may take delight in causing trouble through petty office politics and rigid adherence to procedures they themselves despise. But others... others have had enough. So they set their alarm clock as late as they can, and then hit the snooze button. They read a few too many pages of the newspaper before they leave the house. They saunter in late, perhaps not even realising they're doing so, because deep down, they hate their job and they hate themselves.

2) Laziness
There's this thing called rush hour. Speaking for myself for a moment, I know that if I leave my house at 7:30, I can be in work 25 minutes early, at 8:35. If I leave at 7:55 though, the increased traffic and congestion means I'll be lucky to get in before 9:10. If I thought I could get away with that ten minutes of lateness, I would do so every day. Even as it is, it takes a conscious decision to leave earlier than I

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