A friend has advised me that a person can not be reprimanded or fired for being less than five minutes late for their scheduled shift. Is this correct?

A friend has advised me that a person can not be reprimanded or fired for being less than five minutes late for their scheduled shift. Is this correct?

Most HR policies state that failure to report to work on time is cause for discipline, up to and including discharge. So, in theory, a person could be reprimanded or fired for being less than five minutes late for their scheduled shift. However, in practice, tardiness of less than five minutes hardly seems grounds for reprimand and/or dismissal. It likely depends on the supervisor, the type of job, and the number of past instances of tardiness as to the severity of the action, i.e. a receptionist who is late 5 days a week vs. a back-office clerk who is late once a month.