Record-high numbers of workers quit during the pandemic, while more and more people spoke out about their toxic jobs and went public with their exits. Resignation notices and stories began circulating on social media, sparking a wave of others questioning whether they are really happy with their current job.
Following the trend, Twitter user Alissa May Atkinson from Brooklyn, New York shared a story of how “One time I was moving really heavy patio furniture for a restaurant job that paid me $2.63/hr and my coworker said '**** this,' walked away, and neither I or anyone I knew saw her again.” The tweet amassed 203K likes, resonating with many people on the platform.
The thread soon became a hilarious collection of real-life and unairbrushed stories about people having enough and closing the doors at their work behind them for good. Do you have a similar story to share with us? Hit us in the comments!
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“Are you seeking the smallest moment of serenity on the clock?! Face your register!”
It’s easy to get caught up in the heat of an issue, have tunnel vision and then just quit without thinking about the consequences,” Christine Mitterbauer, a licensed and ICF-approved career coach and serial entrepreneur told Bored Panda in an interview. “Before you just quit your job, you should take a step back and try to look at your whole situation objectively. Practise thinking before you speak. You want to make sure that it’s not your ego getting in the way.”
Christine suggests thinking about the following things: “If you quit your job right now, will you genuinely be happy with all the consequences for the coming days, weeks and months? Or will you regret it? Can you even afford to quit your job? How will it look on your CV?”
“Once you have cooled down, you could take a look at all the pros and cons of quitting, and then decide what’s the right decision for you in the longer term. Never make any hasty decisions when you’re emotional,” she explained.
When asked whether it’s wise to quit a job on the spot in general, Christine said that generally “it’s not wise to quit your job on the spot, as this shows you haven’t thought through the consequences.” She added: “We don’t think rationally when we’re angry and frustrated, so you need to wait until those emotions have subsided, before you can assess your situation objectively.”
Took me a minute that "STUCK BY A TRAIN" wasn't a type for "STRUCK by a train" (thankfully) and was seemingly stuck at a railroad crossing because of a train. lol
Hooray, our company now gives people PTSD! Management goals achieved! /s
If an employee walks out of a job, the boss can think about how they could have handled the situation differently, so they avoid a similar situation in the future, Christine argues. “Did they act unfair or emotionally? It’s a healthy habit to always take a step back from difficult situations to learn how you could handle them better next time round,” she concluded.
Even though every employee is responsible for setting their boundary of just how much nonsense they are willing to put up with at work, sometimes you don’t see these problems until years into the job. In the beginning, we tend to idealize the job we fought hard to get, and so turn a blind eye to many red flags.
However, sometimes the red flags are so bright you cannot miss them. Especially if you've become the victim of pressure, poor treatment, bullying, or worse. In those cases, there’s no other option than to speak to your HR and the superiors. Their actions are crucial in solving the situation.
I call BS, Lowes uses major corporate contracts for computer programs, big national contracts worth millions with big software companies. You son did not desiegn for them any program that he deleted and that caused them to go begged when he was working at one store. I call BS
Call center jobs are the WORST. You're treated like dog s**t on the bottom of the supervisor's shoe.
In some cases, you may feel like no one is listening to you. "If you feel that there's nothing you can do to change the situation and the company or people involved are unwilling to change, then you have to decide whether you're willing to stay in that environment or not,” Eddy Ng, the James and Elizabeth Freeman Professor of Management at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, previously told Bored Panda.
Should a hung around after eating those hotdogs...you could've returned the "gas" in spades!!
Such a decision may be hard when you have just been hired and are only getting warmed up in your new job. However, making the decision to quit before you’re trapped in the workplace for years to come may be a crucial step to protect your sanity and wellbeing. In fact, we only have two options and it’s either choosing to find contentment in the position you're in now or looking for a way out.
Many people who feel that their workplace is toxic may indeed feel imprisoned by the fact that there's a global pandemic going on and it’s going to be hard to find a new job. But such an idea can be very limiting and so it’s better to stay in a positive mindset. In reality, the world just didn't stop one day, companies are still hiring and you can always make money on your own.
FedEx is the problem. Not the employees. In case anyone is wondering, most of the employees aren't working for FedEx. They're subcontractors to contractors who get paid absolute garbage. The contractors frequently sell their subcontractors to new companies. The contractors own sections of routes and pay (poorly) for subcontractors to deliver. No benefits. No bonuses. No equipment. Forced to wear the uniform (provided few sets but never got anymore in 10 years and forced to buy ridiculously expensive shoes), overtime for no pay, and treated like garbage. Experience? Husband worked there 10 years. 4 separate companies he was sold to. Some contractor companies are better than others but when you don't get home til 11pm when you have to be in at 6am, it doesn't matter anymore. My husband finished his route early every single day and would have to help other drivers. Most of the time, his boss sent him to other company's drivers and got paid for his labor. He never saw a dime.
Meanwhile, Professor Ng from Bucknell University said that if the problems in the workplace concern derogatory comments (like unwanted or unwelcome jokes), a human rights complaint might be the right course of action. "Employers (managers and HR) can be held responsible for inaction," he told us and added that “if repeated complaints about the toxic workplace to the manager or HR fall on deaf years, then it is indicative that the employer is not taking the concern seriously and it's the cue that you should switch employers/workplace.
As a Christian. I recommend tiping in the USA cause God told you to share your wealth. Just saying....
Load More Replies...Being religious doesn't make you a good person, any more than standing in a garage makes you a car...
These aren't true Christians, Jesus teaches to share your wealth and treat people how you want to be treated. Bible tracts don't bring people to God, your actions are supposed to be an example. It's not God who drives away people from him, it's people like that.
But leaving a tract is easier because you don't have to actually develop a relationship with someone or even talk to them to make yourself feel good about "sharing the gospel", and if the person isn't receptive, then that's on them and between them and God (/s). As someone who believes the Christian faith, I'll never understand how someone can be greedy, racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, and self-centered, and still pretend to follow Christ. It absolutely blows my mind.
Load More Replies...Didn't Paul write "Tip your waiters, you cheapskates" in 2 Corinthians?
Leaving something in lieu of tip is never ok. Leaving it along with the tip is another matter. The person can choose to read it; but they can't pay their bills with it.
You Read the bible and still waited on them. Careful in life you ought be.
Were they Chick Tracts? If they gave me a bunch of those, I might overlook their cheapness. Those things are so wild and insane, but sadly I've never found one left anywhere or gotten one as a trick or treat handout in my life.
"On the other hand, "if management makes an effort for change, then it would be an opportunity to assist with that change. Many organizations are not addressing systemic discrimination and are engaging with employees with this change," Professor Ng said. In more severe cases when the toxic workplace environment becomes a health concern and the employer is still not willing to act accordingly, the employee can always quit and sue the employer for constructive dismissal.
Because wrinkles TOTALLY RUINED the upscale swanky vibes Hollywood video definitely had! /s
Remember the cost of living is higher in California, so their minimum wage probably has the same amount of buying power as $7.25. Which still sucks.
Had a boss who threatened to fire me if I took off ONE day While I was pregnant ( I spent 9 months puking in a garbage can). On the day I was to return from maternity leave, I walked in and said " I quit " She screamed " you could have told me you were not coming back" - and I said you did not need to threaten me and double my work load while I was pregnant.
"An employee having a panic attack? I know what will help: yell at them! That's bound to make things better and not worse!"
Y'know, lots of people say men are nasty...they've never had to clean a women's public restroom!
I got hired at 19 at a the Driftwood motel in Rogers City Michigan. Ad said "desk clerk." After 2 weeks (holiday weekend) I had only ever worked "fill in" housekeeping and Laundry. I asked when I was going to work behind the desk and got told I was no longer on the schedule. I cleaned their shitty hotel for 2 weeks in high heels and nylons and my best dresses in 90 degree heat because I "needed to help."
i did this only one time in my life. i was pregnant and working at a food place. the manager was a mysogistic a-hole. i was about 6 months along and he would always ask me to get heavy items from the back instead of one of the back of the house employees who were the ones who actually needed it. but, i wanted to keep working to save up for when i was on maternity leave. since my belly was getting out there i would have to balance things on my hip because of their weight. one day he asked me to get a crate of something out of the walk in and when i wasn't moving as fast as he liked he yelled out for the pregnant bimbo to step it up. carried that crate up to him, dropped it on his foot and left.
I don't get the bathroom cleaning ones. Who is responsible for cleaning the bathroom? Do you not use the bathroom at work? I've worked jobs, that had cleaning services, then, throughout course of day, would need a reclean. People are fu@king nasty. I'll clean it, I need to use it.
Someone has to clean the bathroom that customers use. When I worked for A&W as a teen, I had to clean them, and check them throughout the day to see if it needed more tp or paper towels, etc.
Load More Replies...I'd like to contribute with my story: I took on a job as a senior developer for very good pay at an insurance provider. The place was messed up, my superior bad mouthed all people who had left earlier and had a story about all on what sh*tty code they've produced. Meanwhile I was assigned to work on pointless word documents for my first 3 weeks at the job. The 4th week I could finally get my hands dirty with code, which I did. I've never seen that many useless pointless comments on a pull request (the peer review process of new code added to a project). I "fixed" everything and my feature was finally accepted. Then my first review came whereby the CTO explained that everything is going ok, they're happy with my work etc. Finally he asked if I was happy. My moment came. I explained that this is in close competition being the most toxic place I ever worked, so no sorry, not happy at all. I'd rather be happy to be added to the long list to moan about once gone. Said it with a genuine smil
Walked out of last job I loved when the week before I got injured, told the boss w the foreman next to him, foreman said it was my fault (two other undertrained employees caused the injury an almost started a fire) then the boss repeated him. Holiday weekend comes and goes. Boss hasn't spoken to me in two days. I wrote a text to him an the hr lady giving a weeks notice on Wednesday. Thursday comes he still hasn't replied. By 11 am I'm don't with his b******t an just bring my stuff out to my car then go back in an clock out an leave. He finally texted me at 430 (they close at 330 an I left at 11) that I'm rude an unprofessional. I made sure the hr lady saw my reply that even tho I enjoyed working there, I was never written up in 5.5 yrs, and good luck finding someone to do what I did. Which was make him a s**t ton of money. He bought a second company and within the first week all but two people quit an walked out of there too. Bye Felicia.
By daughter worked at a drive-inn. While she was training a friend of the owner came through paid for her $5 purchase with a twenty. Came back two days later saying she did not get her change. She did plus her trainer was back stopping her. She was fried for being careless. A week later the boss wanted her to come back to work because she and her husband wanted to take a weeks' vacation. NO
Walked up and down steps trying to sell $1 cokes to broke college kids at NCAA basketball games. A soda spilled and I went back to commissary to get it refilled. The manager said, "You spilled it, you lost it." I walked out the door owing $39.00 for the soda's I had already sold. 45 years later and I still owe the $39.00. Tough luck.
Got hired to do night shift quality control with a shift differential for a place that made fiberglass pipes. Got stuck in production finishing during the day shift because they were shorthanded because nobody would stay. So I was working a different shift, in a different position and missing my shift diff pay. After 2 weeks I asked my boss when I would do the job I was hired for with the pay I was promised during the shift I was supposed to be on he said 3 to 5 months. Next day I didn't go, blocked his and HRs # and ghosted those incompetent f**ks
I took a low paying part-time position as an on-the-job trainer, training mentally or physically disabled workers. I receive no "official" training myself. One day while training one of the workers at a restaurant, the sole proprietor called me about a form I had turned in. She yelled that it wasn't filled out properly. It did no good trying to explain that she'd never shown me how. She'd yell over me. So when she got done, I told that day would be my last. A month later she called me all sweet and oblivious to why I quit, asking me if I had found any work yet. I told her no. She asked if I wanted to return. I told her absolutely not. Apparently, she had a hard time keeping employees.
I've had a few jobs, I've walked out of one. I worked for a cheap home goods store (not ikea,, but like it). This store was massively understaffed for its size, i had only been there 2 months and every day was miserable. But I had bills to pay and wasn't leaving without another job. Till one day took it too far: It was too busy, I was at the department desk, helping customers do orders, there was an actual lineup waiting, I was the only one on my department, the other department had 2 associates also busy, the cashier was calling endlessly over the walkies for a price check and nobody was answering, the boss was in his office and could see we were swamped from his window yet did nothing. I was already near a breaking point when the cashier finally got a moment, marched up and shoved a sign in my face screaming that this was the wrong price and I needed to fix it. I never made it, I had no idea how and I had responded repeatedly in the walkie that I was busy with a customer.
A customer at the till had given her a hard time over 10 dollars and she then took it out on me in front of a group of customers at the desk I was at. I had enough. I walked upstairs to the lockers, clocked out, put my uniform shirt, name tag and walkie on the table, grabbed my stuff and walked out the front door. 2 months of crap like that almost daily and I couldn't do it any longer.
Load More Replies...i did this only one time in my life. i was pregnant and working at a food place. the manager was a mysogistic a-hole. i was about 6 months along and he would always ask me to get heavy items from the back instead of one of the back of the house employees who were the ones who actually needed it. but, i wanted to keep working to save up for when i was on maternity leave. since my belly was getting out there i would have to balance things on my hip because of their weight. one day he asked me to get a crate of something out of the walk in and when i wasn't moving as fast as he liked he yelled out for the pregnant bimbo to step it up. carried that crate up to him, dropped it on his foot and left.
I don't get the bathroom cleaning ones. Who is responsible for cleaning the bathroom? Do you not use the bathroom at work? I've worked jobs, that had cleaning services, then, throughout course of day, would need a reclean. People are fu@king nasty. I'll clean it, I need to use it.
Someone has to clean the bathroom that customers use. When I worked for A&W as a teen, I had to clean them, and check them throughout the day to see if it needed more tp or paper towels, etc.
Load More Replies...I'd like to contribute with my story: I took on a job as a senior developer for very good pay at an insurance provider. The place was messed up, my superior bad mouthed all people who had left earlier and had a story about all on what sh*tty code they've produced. Meanwhile I was assigned to work on pointless word documents for my first 3 weeks at the job. The 4th week I could finally get my hands dirty with code, which I did. I've never seen that many useless pointless comments on a pull request (the peer review process of new code added to a project). I "fixed" everything and my feature was finally accepted. Then my first review came whereby the CTO explained that everything is going ok, they're happy with my work etc. Finally he asked if I was happy. My moment came. I explained that this is in close competition being the most toxic place I ever worked, so no sorry, not happy at all. I'd rather be happy to be added to the long list to moan about once gone. Said it with a genuine smil
Walked out of last job I loved when the week before I got injured, told the boss w the foreman next to him, foreman said it was my fault (two other undertrained employees caused the injury an almost started a fire) then the boss repeated him. Holiday weekend comes and goes. Boss hasn't spoken to me in two days. I wrote a text to him an the hr lady giving a weeks notice on Wednesday. Thursday comes he still hasn't replied. By 11 am I'm don't with his b******t an just bring my stuff out to my car then go back in an clock out an leave. He finally texted me at 430 (they close at 330 an I left at 11) that I'm rude an unprofessional. I made sure the hr lady saw my reply that even tho I enjoyed working there, I was never written up in 5.5 yrs, and good luck finding someone to do what I did. Which was make him a s**t ton of money. He bought a second company and within the first week all but two people quit an walked out of there too. Bye Felicia.
By daughter worked at a drive-inn. While she was training a friend of the owner came through paid for her $5 purchase with a twenty. Came back two days later saying she did not get her change. She did plus her trainer was back stopping her. She was fried for being careless. A week later the boss wanted her to come back to work because she and her husband wanted to take a weeks' vacation. NO
Walked up and down steps trying to sell $1 cokes to broke college kids at NCAA basketball games. A soda spilled and I went back to commissary to get it refilled. The manager said, "You spilled it, you lost it." I walked out the door owing $39.00 for the soda's I had already sold. 45 years later and I still owe the $39.00. Tough luck.
Got hired to do night shift quality control with a shift differential for a place that made fiberglass pipes. Got stuck in production finishing during the day shift because they were shorthanded because nobody would stay. So I was working a different shift, in a different position and missing my shift diff pay. After 2 weeks I asked my boss when I would do the job I was hired for with the pay I was promised during the shift I was supposed to be on he said 3 to 5 months. Next day I didn't go, blocked his and HRs # and ghosted those incompetent f**ks
I took a low paying part-time position as an on-the-job trainer, training mentally or physically disabled workers. I receive no "official" training myself. One day while training one of the workers at a restaurant, the sole proprietor called me about a form I had turned in. She yelled that it wasn't filled out properly. It did no good trying to explain that she'd never shown me how. She'd yell over me. So when she got done, I told that day would be my last. A month later she called me all sweet and oblivious to why I quit, asking me if I had found any work yet. I told her no. She asked if I wanted to return. I told her absolutely not. Apparently, she had a hard time keeping employees.
I've had a few jobs, I've walked out of one. I worked for a cheap home goods store (not ikea,, but like it). This store was massively understaffed for its size, i had only been there 2 months and every day was miserable. But I had bills to pay and wasn't leaving without another job. Till one day took it too far: It was too busy, I was at the department desk, helping customers do orders, there was an actual lineup waiting, I was the only one on my department, the other department had 2 associates also busy, the cashier was calling endlessly over the walkies for a price check and nobody was answering, the boss was in his office and could see we were swamped from his window yet did nothing. I was already near a breaking point when the cashier finally got a moment, marched up and shoved a sign in my face screaming that this was the wrong price and I needed to fix it. I never made it, I had no idea how and I had responded repeatedly in the walkie that I was busy with a customer.
A customer at the till had given her a hard time over 10 dollars and she then took it out on me in front of a group of customers at the desk I was at. I had enough. I walked upstairs to the lockers, clocked out, put my uniform shirt, name tag and walkie on the table, grabbed my stuff and walked out the front door. 2 months of crap like that almost daily and I couldn't do it any longer.
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