I'm an hourly employee who works 40 hour weeks at a small office. Yesterday I left early (About 40 minutes) because I just wasn't being productive anymore.
As an hourly employee, I get paid based on exactly the time I worked. I do not have any expecially pressing tasks that I need to get done. If I work over 8 hours on another day to make up for this time, they will have to pay me overtime (time and a half). In addition, I start work later than everyone else because I have a 40 mile commute and I get to miss traffic that way. So I leave when no one else is still at work.
I know I should have probably discussed this with someone, but since no one was there I just left - without feeling bad, as I'm not being paid for this time. Does this reflect badly upon my work ethic?