'You can quit at any time': Worker calls boss's bluff and quits in the middle of their shift

Brad Dickson • Managing Editor

Apr 13, 2023 9:00 AM EDT

Giving someone instructions that you don't actually want them to carry out is foolish and bound to make you look like one when they follow through with your commands. It's crazy how common power-tripping bosses use this tactic, thinking their power is absolute over their subordinates. They risk everything on a single ego-fuelled order, daring their workers to call their bluff, only to be surprised when they do.

This worker shared their experience working for a boss who frequently would wield the threat of immediate dismissal over them, which was possible because of the state's "at-will" employment. The boss would tell them that this also meant that the worker could "quit at any time," with a smirk, knowing how desperate she was to keep the job.

Keep reading to see screen grabs of the original thread that was shared on Reddit's r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit by Redditor u/Public_Pressure_4516. For more, check out this manager who stole their worker's program and rolled it out to the entire company.