CEO demands employee work from office after a 2-second cameo of his 5-year-old daughter on a call, leads to his resignation: ‘She stood up and looked over my shoulder. She didn't make any noise’

Author image for Etai Eshet
Etai Eshet • Editor
Jan 24, 2025 5:00 PM EST

Remember when we thought remote work would solve all our problems? No more commutes, no more office politics, just peaceful productivity in our pajamas. Oh, sweet summer children, how naive we were! While working from home has liberated us from fluorescent lighting and mysterious break room odors, it's created an entirely new circus of corporate absurdities.

We're all living in this bizarre new world where our homes have become fishbowls, broadcasted to colleagues through the unforgiving eye of webcams. Suddenly, everyone's a critic of your bookshelves, your choice of virtual background, or just exposed to that questionable art piece your mother-in-law gifted you that's now visible unfortunately.

Some companies have apparently developed policies more complex than international trade agreements about what can and cannot appear in your sacred two-foot-square Zoom rectangle, Or the unwritten rules about what constitutes a "professional" home office environment.

Which leads me to today's story corporate acrobat: a dedicated employee who committed the unthinkable crime of allowing his five-year-old daughter to briefly exist in the same space as a late-night video call.

Advertisement

  • My five-year-old daughter appeared on camera for two seconds, and I got a call from HR. I'm leaving my job.

    Cheezburger Image 10458648576
    via Syda Productions

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • That’s when disaster struck, a two-second cameo of his child. 

    Take a second if need one, I know, that’s horrible. How could he let that happen?

  • The response was A CEO-level meltdown and an HR directive that essentially translated to “Please pretend you don't have a family," respectfully.

  • I'm a senior employee working remotely in a relatively new position. I usually work all day, starting at 6:30 AM and finishing around 9 PM -- but I also do things like drop my kids off at school and such in the middle of the day.
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • I attend a weekly meeting at 8:30 PM with leadership. My wife was traveling last week, so I gave my five-year-old daughter a tablet and let her sit in the office while I was attending the 8:30 PM call. At
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • At 4:30 on Friday, I got a call from HR saying that the CEO didn't like that my daughter appeared in the video and now he's demanding that I work from a WeWork.
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • I politely refused and said I wouldn't go to a WeWork -- the company backed down, but now I don't feel like I can work here anymore. Am I being unreasonable, or would any other remote job be upset like this?
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • Cheezburger Image 10458649088
    via Gemütlichkeit

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Edit: Just to clarify, I answered the question professionally and moved on. I'm not looking for advice on how to answer this type of question, but rather interested in whether this is a common practice.
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • Edit 2: I was browsing a niche job board earlier, and someone in the comments made a passing reference to something called InterviewHammer. It's supposedly
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • Cheezburger Image 10458650624
    via FatCamera

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • used in actual interviews or something like that. I'm very skeptical of these kinds of tools, in addition to being unsure about whether they're even legal.
    via Wonderful_Author9452
  • Routine-Week2329 Insane...if they expect to have meetings after 5pm when children are home then they should expect to occasionally see children. Do they not have families?
    via Routine-Week2329
  • SexiTimeFun I'd put them on blast too. There's this crazy a work culture where everyone just has to prented they don't have kids or lives outside of salving away for the company all day watching their numbers grow
    via SoxiTimeFun
  • and there is nothing that me off more than this example does. We don't work for fun, we work to support our families.
    via SoxiTimeFun
  • And it's 830 at night? Like don't know how you're calm enough to even post this, if you got it in writing as the reason maybe talk to lawyer while you're at it.
    via SoxiTimeFun
  • DCWriterGirl01 This call was at 830 pm and they're worried a kid was on it for a minute? Gross. Start looking for something new. Or say you're not available after 5 anymore
    via DCWriterGirl01
  • Legion 1117 An 8:30 PM work meeting and they're upset your kid was int eh frame for three seconds????? Good choice on the looking for a new job thing. This company S ks...or at least the administration does.
    via Legion1117
  • fvpv Run
    via fvpv
  • om11011shanti 11011om The best bosses I ever had had one thing in common: They loved that I am a mother, and they always urged that I prioritize my daughter over the work, even if I was working for them. I think that's just something to keep in
    via om11011shanti11011om
  • mind, but in this current economic and employment climate, I won't tell you to quit. Above all, you need to feed her! But, keep an ear to the ground for better opportunities, maybe...
    via om11011shanti11011om
  • kittenofd00m When you speak with HR remotely to turn in your resignation, have your daughter in your lap the whole time.
    via kittenofd00m
  • AccomplishedAd6542 Run. I have had times where my employees had whole toddlers on calls with us do to circumstances. We still got the work done and the kids are always so funny and excited
    via AccomplishedAd6542
  • Latter-Willingness83 When that happens with us, my CEO waves and says hi. Understanding that your reports have family lives is a big part of effective leadership and teamwork.
    via Latter-Willingness83
  • KittyandPuppyMama Really weird that they expect you to telework at 8:30 at night to begin with, but also they they expect you NOT to be settled in comfortably in your home with your family at 8:30 also.
    via KittyandPuppyMama

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

management boss workplace-stories hr toxic-workplace manager bosses work PTO managers supervisor workplace Horrible Bosses work-life balance
Scroll Down For The Next Article