'The rest of the team resigned': 20+ Employees who left their bad bosses for better jobs

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Nov 16, 2024 5:00 PM EST

Just know that if you don't absolutely love your job, there's a better one out there waiting for you! In case you needed a reminder today, just listen to these people who left their jobs for a very important reason: fleeing their terrible bosses. 

As this person wrote, a common sentiment is that "people don't leave bad jobs, they leave bad bosses." That's because most people care a lot about their work, and they want to give it their all. But when their manager doesn't have their back, or demands constant overtime, or never thanks them for their contributions, they start daydreaming about greener grass elsewhere. It can be quite defeating to work hard and never be thanked for it, and then watch as your boss throws you under the bus or points out every one of your mistakes. It's enough to make an employee start searching anywhere for a place to work that won't make them pull their hair out. Sure, it's a pain to job hunt, but finding a job that makes you enthusiastic is so much more satisfying than dreading your 9-5. 

Up next, these employees got called to HR for some pretty hilarious reasons, like one worker who sadly recalled they are "not allowed to talk about turtles anymore." 

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    Cheezburger Image 10429206016
    via The Jopwell Collection on Unsplash+

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    [Serious] They say "people don't leave bad jobs, they leave bad bosses." What made you leave?
    via u/[deleted]
  • 03
    IronArtificer Worked in an agency environment. Big clients and big expectations, but we had a fairly small staff for all the projects we took on. Late nights were expected and some nights I barely had time to eat before I had to sleep to go in tomorrow. Me and a few others tried to ask for structural change to get some breathing room
    via u/IronArtificer
  • 04
    between projects. We were always ignored by upper management and my boss. But, hey, they get us pizza after a big project, so we can't complain, right? I was tired, frustrated, and felt like I was just a tool for the man. We worked late and never got anything back from the company.
    via u/IronArtificer
  • 05
    So I sent out applications. Found a bigger company with a cool culture. They offered me a gigantic pay raise, plus better benefits. I went to my boss to hand in my resignation. I gave him 2 weeks notice. This is somehow a thirty minute conversation telling me how miserable I'll be at this other company and how good I had it here. I hadn't even mentioned the name of the
    via u/IronArtificer
  • 06
    new company, so I knew he was talking straight BS. I went back to work, thinking I had my 2 weeks confirmed. However, my boss then pulls me back into his office and says he's going to let me go today. Like right now. Get your things and get out. I did so, never looked back. My new job is great by the way. Better boss, better work, better life.
    via u/IronArtificer
  • 07
    oryx506 Probably the worst boss I ever had was at a McDonald's. We had a younger manager for the first 10 or so months I was there, then they decided to bring in a second manager from another store. For the first week or so he was fine, until one day one of the 16 year old girls that usually works drive thru was put on the grill for no reason. She
    via u/oryx506
  • 08
    got grease on her shirt and the manager said she looked like a pig and to clean it or go home. She left crying. The next day another underage kid asked to just get a drink of water after a 3 hour non stop rush...the kid looked like he was about to pass out. The manager told him no, so he said he'd drink from the sink in the back. He told him if he did that he
    via u/oryx506
  • 09
    would send him home. I lost my sh when I heard that. Basically told him to and left, never went back. I heard that a month later he was fired.
    via u/oryx506
  • 10
    RegularEvening I was 18 or 19 working my first job. He criticized my lipstick saying that it was an ugly color, recommending that I wore a bright red lip to go with my bright red uniform shirt. He didn't like my choice of all black shoes.
    via u/RegularEvening
  • 11
    He didn't like the way I mopped the floor, taking the mop from me to show me how to "properly" do it. He even told one of my coworkers that she couldn't wear a sports bra under her uniform. I quit a few days later.
    via u/RegularEvening
  • 12
    [deleted] As a nanny it's weird when your boss is a mom with no actual experience in being a boss. The worst boss I worked for wasn't that bad when I first started working for her. Over the course of the year she kept adding more things for me to do. I wasn't just taking care of the baby. I became their maid too with no pay
    via u/[deleted]
  • 13
    increase. Eventually it got even worse and I was basically her personal assistant. She got a taste of power and completely abused it. As a young 19 year old it was hard for me to see how bad the situation was. It wasn't an overnight thing.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 14
    I was eventually "fired". The day after I was fired she called me asking where I was. By that time the job was so bad. I did everything in that house. From taking care of the baby to hand washing the mom's delicates. She got me a "uniform" and would reprimand me if it wasn't kept well. Same with hair and make up requirements.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 15
    She was a couple weeks pregnant with baby #2 and was suggest I become a wet nurse for them. After I was fired I never went back. This lady flipped out and showed up at my house.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 16
    swingsandwhat... HR discussing private matters about staff to other staff. She was a disgusting person in general anyway and many other things but this was the final straw.
    via u/swingsandwhatnot87
  • 17
    WarCarrotAF My manager hasn't been great pre-covid, but as soon as our company was forced to shift to mostly WFH, she lost it. She demanded unpaid overtime and is of the mindset that WFH is always going to be less productive than working in office, because she says she gets 1/4 of her own work done when WFH. She also volunteered our department
    via u/WarCarrotAF
  • 18
    as the pilot project to go back into the office when cases were at an all time high, but she herself was not coming in. In addition, she has demanded higher standards and tighter deadlines amidst the pandemic, and does not support us even when our clients are in the wrong. We have had a lot of our team members leave for better jobs recently and everyone. is looking to do the same.
    via u/WarCarrotAF
  • 19
    NimpyPootles The client let slip how much they were paying for me. In one month they paid more than my annual salary. I asked my boss for a pay raise and was told there was just no money available. I said I'd give them six weeks to find the money and she laughed at me as I wasn't "the type to give ultimations".
    via u/NimpyPootles
  • 20
    When I handed my notice in (after securing a better offer from another company) my boss's boss offered me a 50% raise to stay.
    via u/NimpyPootles
  • 21
    fluffy_bunny_87 When a recruiter cold called me and said "oh you work at x? I'm sure we can get you at least a 10% raise somewhere else". I started looking around and got a 27% raise a month later. 5 years at the new place and I make about 66% more than I did when I left the previous job that I was at for almost 5 years.
    via u/fluffy_bunny_87
  • 22
    Keep an eye on places like Glassdoor. Know what you are worth. Don't work for a discount unless there is a really good reason.
    via u/fluffy_bunny_87
  • 23
    [deleted] Being called into my managers office to be "coached" because I missed one day of work in a two month time span to attend my aunt's funeral. The first thing the manager said was,
    via u/fluffy_bunny_87
  • 24
    "I would have done the same thing." She then proceeded to have me sign paper work instructing how to avoid absenteeism to put in my work record. That day I decided to nope the heck out of there.
    via u/fluffy_bunny_87
  • 25
    Shadowjacksdad Changed the commission structure mid-month and did not update sales staff on the new goals. I missed my commission of $3800 by $4. Was under the impression that I was $500 over my goal so I let junior sales reps take sales to get them over
    via u/Shadowjacksdad
  • 26
    their goals too, to qualify us for a site wide bonus. Turns out they scrapped that too in the new structure. Lost four reps in a day over $6k in commissions. Company ended up sending most of the senior staff to prison on tax evasion charges soon after we left.
    via u/Shadowjacksdad
  • 27
    maybenomaybe My best friend and I worked at the same small company, under a horrific boss (think Miranda Priestley from The Devil Wears Prada, but with early onset dementia). My friend got a great new job and gave her notice. In an effort to get her to stay, our boss offered her my job.
    via u/maybenomaybe
  • 28
    I don't know why the f she thought my friend would accept. She knew we were friends, we'd even booked. off the same week of holiday to travel together.
    via u/maybenomaybe
  • 29
    Of course my friend said no, and I handed in my notice the very next week. And I let her know why. I mean, there were a hundred reasons, but I told her that was the straw that broke the camel's back. She had no idea until then that I knew what she'd done, and the look on her face was priceless as she tried to figure out some way to deny it.
    via u/maybenomaybe
  • 30
    Bad-Brains I'd kill it with my efficiency scores all quarter but when the time came for raises I was given an impossible task. When I couldn't complete it that was the reason cited for not giving me a raise.
    via u/Bad-Brains
  • 31
    Our company grew and grew and became more and more profitable because the jobs were getting bigger and bigger, and a lot of us would stay late and work overtime - but hardly anyone was getting raises. If they were it was a cost of living raise being passed off as a genuine raise.
    via u/Bad-Brains
  • 32
    So I figured I could take my skills elsewhere and changed careers.
    via u/Bad-Brains
  • 33
    RabbiAndy She gave off this cheerful, friendly appearance but over time realized she was immature, passive aggressive, gossipy, and condescending. It was a shame because the work place itself was great but she brought the mood down and the rest of the staff hated her.
    via u/RabbiAndy
  • 34
    UncleHeavy A now former colleague and I both applied for a more senior position that had become vacant. I had vastly more experience; having had a similar role in the past. I was better qualified and frankly, a better fit for the job. Even prior to interview, the senior management had already decided they
    via u/UncleHeavy
  • 35
    wanted to offer my colleague the position. Unfortunately nepotism prevailed and the level of smugness I had to deal with was bad enough, but then they decided to treat me like an idiot child for the next year, rather than the experienced professional that I am. I decided to get the h I out after about 6 months,
    via u/UncleHeavy
  • 36
    secured a much better job with higher pay and working conditions. I gave my required 90 days notice. My former colleague/manager was so good at their job that they didn't even advertise my job until it suddenly occurred to them that I was due to leave in 2 weeks time. No-one was appointed to my position and the manager tried to offload my duties onto one of my team,
    via u/UncleHeavy
  • 37
    who promptly burned-out and resgned due to the workload. The rest of the team resigned for better opportunities elsewhere and my former boss left 6 months later under a very dark cloud. Karma is ab
    via u/UncleHeavy
  • 38
    disjointedOne It was a smallish company, less than 40 employees. My boss encouraged inter- departmental fights with others departments. And when I refused to participate, my team ghosted me. I went to the CEO indirectly a few times. Finally lost my patience, scheduled a 1-on-
    via u/disjointedOne
  • 39
    1 with the CEO and told him he was running a shitshow, and if he didn't take actions A) B) and C) fast, the company would fail, but I'd be gone long before. Three weeks later they walked me out. A year later, they walked the CEO out.
    via u/disjointedOne
  • 40
    deathleprchaun Refused to give me a raise he verbally offered in attempt to keep me around. Got a better job while he got demoted. I don't necessarily believe in karma but this worked out for me.
    via u/deathleprchaun
  • 41
    maeelstrom I can totally relate to this. After working for the same company for 17 years, and always getting praise for my work, I finally got a position in a department I'd always wanted. My manager was excited to have me and continued to praise me. Then one night, when I was on-call, we got an "urgent page", which was sent to my
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 42
    phone...and my phone didn't. ring. So my manager was called. She texted me a few times. Well, I don't have my texting set to be very loud. Suffice to say she was kind of PO'd the next day. I apologized that my phone hadn't worked properly for the call, and explained that if she'd tried to call me instead of text, it probably would have been fine. And besides, my 'backup' co-
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 43
    worker had got the call and fixed it really fast. I mean, that's what backups are for, right? She wouldn't have it. Kept telling me I'd screwed up, and that it better not happen again. Suggested I get another phone as my backup. wut?! I apologized again but said "Look, what happened could happen to anyone. Mistakes happen. <my backup> got the call
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 44
    and handled it anyways. Besides, it really wasn't super-urgent." She would not let it go. The kicker is, she'd never started out asking me WHY I'd missed the call. Her immediate response before we even sat down to talk about it was along the lines. of "Maeelstrom, you missed this important call so <your backup> had to fix it, and he should not have had to.
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 45
    You're in trouble." Our relationship went downhill from there. Mind you, I'd put 17+ years into this place, was a great employee, had lots of respect from my peers AND HERS. I would get up early and work late to accommodate our customers' schedules. Put in time on my days off for truly urgent issues, and never got OT pay. I didn't mind. I liked
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 46
    the job and got paid well. After a few months, she and I ended up sitting with an HR rep who tried to mediate a truce between us. Problem was, he was mostly on her side. Just kept bringing up the (very few) times I had NOT performed up to par, and totally missing the context every time. Like "Boss-Lady tells me there was this one email where you were a little ride to the
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 47
    customer. Is that true?" Me: "Well, let me explain the situation." HR Rep: "No. Just answer the question. Were your de?" Me: "Well, yes, a bit I suppose." HR Rep then proceeds to move on to the next damning question. After a bit of this, I looked across the table at my boss. and said "Boss, is any of this situation going to change with you?" She just looked at HR Rep.
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 48
    "OK, that's what I thought." | stood up, threw my security badge on the table, grabbed my personal bag (which I had prepared for just such an eventuality), and said "I quit." And walked out.
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 49
    Funny thing is the HR Rep followed me out the door, calling after me. "Maeelstrom! We don't want this!" I turned around. "Neither did I." I felt SO GOOD driving home. I've got a much better job where I'm much more appreciated now.
    via u/maeelstrom
  • 50
    pearlie_girl I was a software co-lead with 7 direct reports on a team of 20. Our manager micromanaged the budget so badly. We had to estimate development hours for our teams, about 18 months in advance. We had to explain all cost overruns and underruns that deviated more than 10%. So if I estimated that my team would take 600 hours for 5
    via u/pearlie_girl
  • 51
    new features and it took 530 hours, I had to write a variance report, and the reason couldn't be "software implementation estimates are very difficult to do." Worst of all, if my estimate was too big for the budget, I had to revise artificially and take the overrun when (surprise!) later we couldn't meet the estimate. After joining my team, we went from the least productive (always
    via u/pearlie_girl
  • 52
    overrunning, months behind schedule) to the most productive for our project. When review time came, my raise was so paltry that our simultaneous change in health insurance benefits resulted in smaller weekly paychecks for me. That was my last straw. I left, and nearly doubled my salary.
    via u/pearlie_girl

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