Working with your parents in a professional setting is complicated enough, but what if you had to constantly make up for their lack of preparation at work? At some point, I'd start looking for a new job. For this mother-son duo, I think one of them may not be coming back to work after this incident. Boundaries are a crucial part of growing up, and as you gain your independence, you'd hope your parents would respect those boundaries the most. In this instance, it seems this son did everything by the book to avoid being called into work on the day of his graduation. I think you'll agree, he had every reason to not want to work that day.
The bigger question is, why wasn't his mother at his graduation in the first place? She was at work. There's definitely something off about this picture. We don't blame the son for not wanting to pick up the phone, let alone come in for a surprise shift. No one was fired during this incident, but perhaps it's time to move on to bigger and better things. Wouldn't you agree? There has to be more to life than 9 to 5 shifts.
