Workplace sympathy tends to disappear when actions don’t match the excuse.

So when a coworker claimed she was too injured to answer phones at her job, but showed up just long enough to grab cake and flowers, eyebrows were raised across the office.

You’ll want to keep reading for this one!

Coworker called out for a week, but stopped by to pick up her birthday cake

My coworker called out for five days due to a “muscle spasm” in her arm.

She said she was in pain to the point she was unable to perform her job duties, which include sitting at a desk and answering the phone.

From the start, the timing was a bit suspicious.

She conveniently called out during her birthday week.

My other coworkers and I planned a birthday celebration for her on the Monday she called out. We got her flowers, cake, and a gift card.

I asked if we could FaceTime to sing happy birthday, and she said yes, but she didn’t pick up the phone.

So when she actually showed up, management wasn’t having it.

I ended up just sending her a picture of the gifts we got her to bring her some joy and let her know we were thinking of her.

Despite her muscle spasm, she decided to stop by to pick up her cake and flowers and then dipped for the rest of the week.

She ended up getting written up.

Some people just have no common sense.

What did Reddit make of this story?

This commenter doesn’t understand why people go to the trouble of faking an illness.

This commenter couldn’t help but think of a similar story.

There can be a clear disconnect between management and employees when it comes to taking time off.

She may be “injured,” but that doesn’t mean she’s not hungry!

It appeared she made a miraculous recovery. A little too miraculous.

Birthday cake is sweet, but consequences still apply.

Thought that was satisfying? Check out what this employee did when their manager refused to pay for their time while they were traveling for business.