'Well...we're a startup': Candidate calls toxic boss out during interview for not paying his employees OT, withdraws application

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Feb 13, 2024 8:00 AM EST

Startups will make up any excuse to be unprofessional, unreasonable, and so unserious. This job candidate found themselves in an interview with an arrogant, toxic boss who made work-life balance seem like a lazy outlook on life. Thankfully, they had enough experience in the startup world to know that when everyone is asked to work overtime throughout the weekends, there is a good chance that they are not being adequately compensated for that extra hard work. So when the candidate asked the interviewer about it, all the interviewer could blame the lack of an overtime policy on was startup culture. Therein lies the problem, folks!

Keep scrolling below for the full play-by-play and for similar anecdotes from folks in the comments section. It's remarkable how normalized this culture of overworking is under the false promises of unlimited PTO, future promotional opportunities, snacks and coffee for days, and all the other nonsensical "benefits" that startups have to offer. For more stories like this, check out this compilation of cringeworthy industry secrets.

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  • 01
    "How were your employees compensated for sacrificing their time with their families?"
    via Charles Deluvio
  • 02
    "But, we're a start up!" So following my layoff last week, I did a first interview with the head of marketing at a 30- person start-up for a lead position. It's worth mentioning that I've got a decade of experience at this point. I built my career in start-ups, but I'm no longer in that grind mindset.
    via Anonymous
  • 03
    So this interview goes on, and it's going pretty well, until this guy says something along the lines of "well you know these people who leave at 6 pm on the dot and call it work life balance." Giant red flag. So I say, "Well, what would you call it?"
    via Anonymous
  • 04
    Him: "Well, you know these people who just want to put in their hours and then go home. We need dedication, and sometimes, working late is just part of the job." Me: "Can you give me an example of when that happened?"
    via Anonymous
  • 05
    Him: "Well, we had a product feature that needed to be released, and so it was all hands on deck. Our whole team worked throughout the weekend. It doesn't happen often, but it's important to have that commitment when it does." Me: "Right, so how were your employees compensated for sacrificing their time with their families?"
    via Anonymous
  • 06
    He just looked at me. Finally, after an awkward pause, he said, "Well....we're a start- up." Me: "No excuse. When company X was the same size you were, we worked throughout the weekend because our biggest partner's customers couldn't use our biggest competitor anymore. We were all given a 200 dollar permanent raise for our efforts. You can't expect people to just sacrifice their time and not get paid for it."
    via Anonymous
  • 07
    And he just stared at me, not knowing what to say. He awkwardly wrapped the interview, and I shot off an email after withdrawing my application. Absolutely the not.
    via Anonymous
  • 08
    ENDAM esdoubleyouprooster - 7 hr. ago This is why start-ups often give out shares to employees - so the employees also benefit from the growing worth of the company. Sort of an automatic compensation for long hours. If they give nothing for a whole weekend... run :) 1.3k Reply Share
    via Anonymous
  • 09
    OP - 6 hr. ago Even then, I'm not really interested in equity. Might be short-sighted, but , once you see how it works from the inside, you don't have a lot of faith in the company. 602 Reply Share
    via Anonymous
  • 10
    Know_how_to_b_stupid 5 hr. ago My ex-boss expected us to be available night and weekend. When answered, "well no, cos nights and weekends are ours, and it is the law", he said "we are a startup and the law doesn't apply"... Reply Share 285
    via Anonymous
  • 11
    OP - 4 hr. ago LMAO that's horrible but hilarious. Imagine thinking the law just doesn't apply
    via Anonymous
  • 12
    szartenger 4 hr. ago LMAO. startups. I honestly loathe them. I worked at THE LAST one last year. They changed WFH policies EVERY WEEK. I accepted the offer as fully remote, they changed it to fully on-site on the first day, then they changed it to hybrid, 2 days on-site. Then they changed it to 4 days on-site. I just stopped going in altogether. Any time they called me after 5 pm they bitched and moaned about having to work through the evening, but they never ever said anything about compensatio
    via Anonymous
  • 13
    Zero responsibility, zero humanity. I got fired when a C level started yelling at me for something that turned out to be his fault and I told him he should shut it and start taking responsibility. Honestly one of the best days of my life. Reply Share 162 ...
    via Anonymous
  • 14
    OP-3 hr. ago Legend status. In France, if you accept a role as WFH, they have to honor that. They can't walk it back later without your permission. It's also illegal to contact you after hours. 90 Reply Share
    via Anonymous
  • 15
    iwoketoanightmare . 5 hr. ago A lot of startups are run by psychos.. I interviewed at one that was like we can give you access to this expensive travel plan that gets you into airport lounges, whiskey libraries and such, then I asked how much they were gonna pay me... Oh, all we can do is $25 an hour... I laughed hysterically all the way to the parking lot. 144 Reply Share
    via Anonymous
  • 16
    LincHayes 5 hr. ago My old company used to ask for "volunteers" to work extra shifts, usually on holiday weekends, and in exchange you don't get overtime pay, but you get a day off to use at approved times. So you're basically just giving me my own time back, but now I have to get approval to use it.
    via Anonymous
  • 17
    It's a better deal for me to not volunteer and have the holiday off. People see how the company acts if say...you need 15 minutes for something, they want you to make up the time. But if you stay 30 minutes over, oh well. Thanks.
    via Anonymous
  • 18
    I could never get them to understand why no one volunteers. They were firmly stuck in the mindset that we should WANT to volunteer for the good of the company...to do the company a favor....I guess because the company is doing us a favor by allowing us to work for them? 101 Reply Share
    via Anonymous

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