Tax associate gets suspended for refusing to come in on day off, punishment backfires for his prideful boss: 'The real revenge was accepting my suspension'

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Jan 27, 2025 4:00 PM EST

Sometimes, there is no need to enact payback on a disorganized manager; their disorganization and poor management skills can oftentimes do the work for you. 

It goes to show that incompetence always reveals itself because at the end of the day, people who are unable to do their jobs well are not typically good at masking their inept qualities for very long. Keep scrolling below for this story of a tax associate who essentially ran a one-man operation until he was punished for not coming in at the last minute on his scheduled day off. 

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    D S OFF + MU GT MRC M- M+ + ய O ConCe rept 7 00 6 +1 × AC 45- 12 20 H D Σ
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

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

  • As you'll see, things seemed to be off to a strong start for this guy, who ran his own desk performing tax services for clients in his community. Unfortunately, matters were made worse when his manager was unable to cover the associate's desk on a day off that was scheduled and prepared for months in advance. Clearly, this kind of incompetence is one person's fault, and it sure isn't the employee. 

  • 02
    I was a tax associate at the most well known tax service in North America. I did very well in the class you take, which determines your eligibility to be hired as well as teaching you how to do taxes, and was hired. I bounced from office to office as newbies do, and I was doing well enough that I was always the first to be called if a shift needed covered.
    via TheVaneja
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    After my first season with them went so well I was invited back for the next year and the class was free because of the invitation back. In case you wonder why the class is every year, it's because tax rules change every year and we have to keep up.
    via TheVaneja
  • 04
    Shortly after the class was over, which I aced, I was approached by the lady who ran the district. She wanted to open a seasonal office in a Wal-Mart 50km outside the city I worked in. She wanted me as a primary associate there: in part because I'd done so well in the previous year, in part because I'd aced the class, in part because of my background in security, and in
    via TheVaneja
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    part because I lived 20km closer to this Wal-Mart than anyone else on staff. I wasn't to be a manager, but i was going to be the only full time associate. I'd open & close almost every day, and often be the only associate on site. It was basically my baby to take care of. There were hints it might lead to advancement in the company as well. I was pretty excited at the opportunity.
    via TheVaneja
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    At first everything was great. The Wal-Mart staff liked me, the customers liked me, my boss liked me. I was blasting through customers. Only maybe 5 people walked away due to having to wait, out of the few hundred who approached my little 'office' beside the produce section.
    via TheVaneja
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    PAY YOUR TAX HERE! NOW
    via The New York Public Library

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

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    Two months in, right before the tax season really heated up, I had a weekend I'd booked off the same day they'd hired me. I was going out of the Province to see family. Trip had been set long before they hired me and I'd made it quite clear I wasn't going to be around.
    via TheVaneja
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    The schedule accurately reflected that. So weekend arrives and I go. Had a good time, came home Monday evening so I could be back Tuesday morning.
    via TheVaneja
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    When I got home I checked my answering machine for messages (even if smart phones were starting to be a thing I didn't have one, and I'm pleased to say I still don't). There was 3 messages. Two from my boss the district lady, and one from the scheduler. I don't remember everything word for word so I'll paraphrase
    via TheVaneja
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    Message 1, Saturday morning approximately 7am: Hi Vaneja, sorry to do this to you but we need you in today. Employee X who we scheduled to replace you's car broke down.
    via TheVaneja
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    Message 2, Saturday afternoon approximately 2pm: I'm very disappointed in you for not responding to me and not showing up. I'll be making some changes.
    via TheVaneja
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    Message 3: Monday morning approximately 9am: Hi Vaneja this is *scheduler*, your hours have changed this week call me when you get this.
    via TheVaneja
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    Now at this point in my life I'm not a kid out of high school and I've had enough experience with screw jobs that I'm absolutely not going to crawl on my hands and knees apologizing and begging for my job. If you're going to be petty and mean just because you Tup then we're going to have problems. And so we did.
    via TheVaneja
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    I called the scheduler, and was told i was suspended for a week and to call my boss after a week to get back on the schedule. She said the boss was trying to put me in my place and teach me how to be a good manager. I'd get back on the schedule after the week was over. I
    via TheVaneja
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    brought up my pre planned and scheduled time off, and also that I wasn't a manager I was a regular employee. The scheduler was very uncomfortable but she was only doing what she was told. They did need me she said, just call boss in a week.
    via TheVaneja

  • Thankfully, the associate did not even need to fight back when his “punishment” for not coming in was a week-long suspension. That's because, without him, everything fell apart pretty quickly. As we said earlier, incompetence often reveals itself on its own!

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    I said sure, and then didn't. I was furious and I wasn't the one who was going to be put in her place. I called a few of the customers who I'd been working with and explained I was no longer working there and they chose to keep my as their tax gal regardless. It really
    via TheVaneja
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    wasn't intended as revenge even though it sounds that way, the company wasn't going to make more than it cost to have someone do their taxes anyway. This was purely a customer relationship thing. I like to finish what I start.
    via TheVaneja
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    The real revenge was accepting my suspension. The entire week I was suspended I made sure to stop in at the Wal-Mart to see if I knew who they scheduled for my shift and if we were friendly then help them out with the quirks of this location. But there was never anyone there. I confirmed with the Wal-Mart staff, all week they had
    via TheVaneja
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    noone working there. Paying Wal- Mart to rent space and getting nothing but a bad reputation for it because the heavily advertised new location had 0 employees. It remained that way for the rest of the season. 2 months.
    via TheVaneja
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    The boss never called me and I never called her. Pride. I have no idea how it impacted her professionally, I stayed far away from taxes ever since. I got another job before my suspension was over and never looked back.
    via TheVaneja
  • 22
    MistraloysiusMithrax 2 hr. ago They suspended you because someone else's car broke down? Definition of FAFO. I only wish you'd looked up her boss and told them how she shut down a profitable location out of...I don't even know what to call it
    via TheVaneja
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    PN_Guin . 2 hr. ago As people like to say "Don't threaten me with a good time". The manager probably blamed it all on you, so I doubt it affected her much professionally. On
    via TheVaneja
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    the positive side her bonus likely took a beating. Glad you got out of there
    via TheVaneja

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workplace-stories work stories toxic-workplace job work satisfying quitting story Horrible Bosses company quitting toxic-work-environment
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