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'I'd be impressed if you could find a better job': Boss makes employee work while on vacation, takes a permanent one

Working for a small family-owned-and-operated business is either going to be the best job you ever had or the worst by a considerable margin… there's no in-between—and whichever one it is depends wholly on the people who are running it.

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Posted by Brad Dickson
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  • This boss made this employee's job the latter of the two, almost as if they were determined to act out the stereotype of a horrible boss overbooking contracts and cutting costs at all costs… but mostly at the cost of their overworked employees' well-being and balance in their own personal lives. Having no boundaries, their boss repeatedly asked employees to work while on scheduled leave, even going as far as asking them to change their leave dates at the last moment, even if they had already paid for their trips in full.

    This all came to a head when the employee's son was born. Despite having five weeks scheduled off work, their boss was calling, texting, and emailing them by the second day. When their boss challenged them to “find another job,” they rose to that challenge and took a permanent vacation from their boss's behavior.

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  • 1
    Boss is going to keep asking me to work shifts when I take time off? How about I take a permanent vacation... LOC Disclaimer: I tried to keep it as short as I could but it still turned out pretty lengthy. No TLDR...read it or don't. This is the story of my former employer. I work in the northeast US and my employer at the time was a very small company (Boss and 5 employees) in a very specific industry where 90% of our work was on construction sites and finding a well-qualified person in this ver
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 2
    My boss was the kind of boss that every employee hates. Corners were cut every possible way in order to keep overhead costs down. On top of that he would constantly overbook on jobs (like signing contracts for 6 projects during the same week knowing full well that he only has 5 employees) which would result in the employees often working 14 hour days or more....which really you're on salary (no overtime). when His worst attribute by far was approving time off and then during your time off callin
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 3
    After working at this company for 6 years I got used to all the aforementioned annoyances. But then things changed, my son was born. In the months leading up to his birth I made it very clear that I would be taking a 5-week unpaid leave of absence once he arrives. The state we're in allows new parents to take up to 8 weeks of unpaid leave. I told my boss that I know 8 weeks would be a huge strain on such a small company so I was willing to take 5 weeks but those 5 weeks would be completely "off
    Via u/Tautochrone1
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  • 4
    Fast-forward to my son's birth. He was born on a Friday and after a short stay in the NICU (don't worry, he's fine) was released on Monday and we took him home. Tuesday morning (yeah...the next day) I wake up to a missed call, an email, and 3 texts all from my boss asking me to call him back ASAP. For reasons still unknown to me to this day I call him back and he tells me there's a slight emergency (code speak for he screwed up the scheduling and has a job with no employee at it) and asks if I c
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 5
    I lost it. I literally felt something in my neck snap and unleashed a verbal assault on him that I still feel bad about now, a year later. I ended my rant with an apology...as much of a move it was for him to be calling me in that situation it was still completely unprofessional of me to say what I said to him.Obviously he wasn't a big fan of what I said and after a small rant of his own ended with the sentences that made this whole story possible.
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 6
    He said, "You've got a pretty good gig at this company that most people your age would be thankful for. I'd be impressed if you could find a better job in this field because I've been doing this for 30 years and I know how small this industry is and trust me, good jobs like yours don't come along very often. Think about that." So we ended the call and I did what he said. I thought about it. After thinking about it for about 30 seconds I got out of bed, sat down in front of my computer and starte
    Via u/Tautochrone1
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  • 7
    5 weeks later my time off came to an end and my first day back I came in to work, walked into my bosses office and handed him a piece of paper. Boss: "What's this?" Me: "I thought about what you said about how you be really impressed if I could find a better job than the one I have here. ...so I did." My boss reads over what I handed him...a job offer from a competitor for the exact same job I was performing but at a 25% higher salary, an extra week of paid vacation compared to what I had AND a
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 8
    Boss: "Well then...ummm...can I have the day to crunch some numbers to come up with a counter- offer? Me: "No, don't bother. I just wanted you to see it because I know you wouldn't have believed me otherwise." Gave my two week notice and left for whatever job site I was on that day. That was a year ago and I could not be happier with my new job. I get to spend lots of time with my boy and that's the best job perk there is. For all you bosses and managers out there. Dont with your employees...esp
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 9
    blackjesushiphop My company has a line in my contract that if anyone calls me and asks me to work on a scheduled day off I am to be paid for 8 hours that day and I keep my day off. I assume to curblike this. 6.2k Reply Share jakabo27 What size/kind of company allows you to negotiate things like this? I'm about to graduate college and my experience (with a 7000+ employee chemical plant) as an engineer is that almost nothing is negotiable 1.4k Reply Share
    Via u/Tautochrone1
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  • 10
    radioaktvt Most employees don't quit their jobs....they quit their bosses! So true. Congrats on your son and the better job! 1.1k Reply Share ●●●
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 11
    Aykay24 You still gave two weeks notice, you're a classy man. 316 Reply Share Yeasty_Queef For real, ida been like "consider this my two weeks. Also, I'm extending my fmla for two more weeks. 201↓ Reply Share 11 ●●●
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 12
    alankel Congratulations on the new job! I was in a similar situation a few years ago after my daughter was born but my boss went the opposite way to your old one. Mine was full of apologies, I got an extra couple of days of paid holidays and took my wife out for a nice dinner in a restaurant on the company's expense account. There were a couple of things over the years that I've been annoyed with but overall the place I'm with now are pretty decent. 1.2k Reply Share
    Via u/Tautochrone1
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  • 13
    alphalegend91 I love this. As a small business owner I can't understand why a boss would treat their employee like and expect them to stick around. Your boss sounds like a nightmare and I'm so happy you left for greener pastures. Reply Share 366
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 14
    slightlyassholic Yeah, people in charge sometimes forget that skilled employees, especially in a niche field, are often very hard to find or replace and if they are shorthanded odds are that several other prospective employers are as well and will be all too happy to hire away someone from them. 109 Reply Share
    Via u/Tautochrone1
  • 15
    FifthRendition I once heard someone here on Reddit say, "Money comes and goes, health just goes." 28 Reply Share ●●●
    Via u/Tautochrone1
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  • 16
    erobbslittlebrother I love when bosses pull the "Its not better anywhere else/this is ACTUALLY a really good job" . They're always full of .... 25 Reply Share
    Via u/Tautochrone1

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workplace discussion workplace-stories jobs job malicious compliance work i quit quit workplace Horrible Bosses quitting workplace malicious compliance employment in the workplace

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