'Call me on my days off? Guess you're paying me': Energy employee gets even with boss who won't stop bugging them on their days off

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Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Jul 21, 2024 11:00 AM EDT

One worker was accustomed to working 8 days on, then having 6 days off. That sounds like a pretty sweet gig if you can get it! By the 8th day of work, you must be very ready for a break, but you could plan all sorts of fun activities during those 6 days off in a row. 

This person, u/WyoPeeps, was actually trying to go "off grid" during one of their 6-day breaks. But their boss was continually interrupting them. When that happens, it makes you feel like you've sold your soul to the company. How can an employee ever relax and unwind if they're waiting for a call or email begging them to work? The company might wonder why an employee would want to stay in a work situation like that… That company must have an incredibly high turnover rate if they can't even let their workers have a single day to themselves. The employee is going to feel like they're living only to work, and they're going to race for the door. 

After checking out this story of workplace malicious compliance, check out the comments from people who applauded the original poster for their smart move. Then, check out some very funny and quite difficult-to-read signs.

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  • 01
    'I was required to drop what I was doing and... fix some issues'
    via Andrew Neel on Unsplash
  • 02
    Call me on my days off? I guess you're paying me for a call-out! Years ago, I worked in the energy industry. My location was manned by a single person, working 10-hour days, with 8 days on and 6 days off. In the off hours, automation kept things running. During those 8 days, I
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 03
    was on call, so if there was a problem at the location, I was required to drop what I was doing and either log in to fix some issues or drive the 50 miles out to the facility to fix the problem. Company policy stated that if there was a call, regardless if it warranted a response to drive out, or if we could handle it remotely through our computer, we got paid for a minimum of 2 hours at time and a half.
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 04
    After a particularly rough shift with lots of nights spent on location, I went on a much needed set of days off. On my first day off, my counterpart on the other shift called with questions about the problems I had had. I answered and went about resting. The next day, I decided to take a break and go off-grid for the day. When I
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 05
    returned, I had a number of calls. from my boss. When I called him back, he reprimanded me and told me that I was an on-call employee so I need to answer when called. Annoyed, I just said ok but asked him to follow that up with an email which he did. We talked more about the problems for about 10 minutes
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 06
    and hung up. That evening, my counterpart called 3 more times, and we talked through some ideas for fixing it. Over the next 4 days I had off, he, my boss, and others working on the issue called many times.
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 07
    Now, Remember when my boss said I was an on-call employee and I was required to answer? I added each call to my timesheet. At the end of my 6 days off, I had made just as many hours as I would in my 8-day shift. At the end of the pay period, I was called into the office where he and the district manager demanded that I explain the
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 08
    "Excessive callouts". I provided the email sent to me by my boss as well as the company policy for calls. They said that was a pretty wide interpretation of both. I countered and said that I had been called and I answered as required by my boss's email, so per policy, I was entitled to
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 09
    callout pay. They disagreed and called in the Vice President, and HR who surprisingly, agreed with me. I was paid out for the time, and the rule became that you were only to call off duty employees in dire emergencies. I was never called on my days off again.
    via u/WyoPeeps
  • 10
    TTMM-2020 This is the way. Funny how they only respect your time when it shows up on their bottom line.
    via u/TTMM-2020
  • 11
    SalleighG Yup, if you are required to answer then you are on call. You were right.
    via u/SalleighG
  • 12
    imakesawdust So in your boss' worldview, you worked 8 days, off 6 but were expected to be on call all 14 days?
    via u/imakesawdust
  • 13
    Quasirandom1234 Well played, and for once a reasonable HR ruling.
    via u/Quasirandom1234
  • 14
    GovernorSan Honestly, it seems to me that if your superior can't do their job on your day off without calling you, they aren't qualified to be your superior.
    via u/GovernorSan
  • 15
    eveningsand They disagreed and called in the Vice President, and HR who surprisingly, agreed with me. VP of HR was definitely protecting the company here. Paying you out was far cheaper than a lawsuit. VP saw the company had no leg to stand on.
    via u/eveningsand
  • 16
    illusorywallahead This is beautiful. You essentially had no true days off, so you made it too expensive for them to not give you true days off. And now you have days off. Well done friend. Hope you bought some fancy beer with your overtime pay to celebrate.
    via u/illusorywallahead

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boss workplace-stories day off jobs job malicious compliance bosses work coworkers malicious-compliance-reddit workplace phone calls malicious compliance reddit
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