Overview

• A July 15 Reddit post detailed that a manager at a medium-sized Indian company ordered an employee to finish his tasks before taking a scheduled lunch break.
• The employee’s sharp response—“I earn to eat and you’re stopping me from eating”—went viral within hours and he proceeded to take his meal.
• Reddit users praised his stand, sharing similar accounts of managerial overreach and echoing calls for respect of basic workplace rights.
• Major news outlets have since covered the episode, spotlighting inconsistent enforcement of India’s labor laws on mandatory meal breaks in private firms.
• Despite widespread online support, the employee now fears retaliation after his manager allegedly began ignoring him following the showdown.