15+ Job-quitting employees who left their bosses to do their work: 'After being there about 10 minutes, I decided... I'm out'

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Feb 14, 2025 3:00 PM EST

Some employees just hit a wall one day and decide they'll never step foot in that workplace again. The decision doesn't always happen overnight. It's often a cumulation of months or years of poor treatment. You know it's time to leave that job when you cry before every shift, or when you think about quitting a dozen times every day. With every grumpy customer or irritated manager, you think to yourself, "This is my last day, for real this time." Usually, people don't quit on the spot unless they have something lined up, but some things really push employees over the edge. 

A bunch of people shared the reasons they had to leave their jobs, and a lot of stories have a common thread: bad bosses. If your manager won't stick up for you when customers are mean, or if they never appreciate anything you do, this has a detrimental effect on morale. Some employees even left their bosses mid-shift, meaning that boss became an employee for the shift. What a delightful way to leave the job you can't stand! 

Next, check out some folks who are having big technological issues, like one person whose iPhone "wants me to wait 53 years before attempting to unlock [it]." 

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  • 01
    'Instantly, I undid my apron... and walked out. [Boss] ended up calling my cell like 3 hours later and left a message asking if I I was going to finish my shift. I texted him back with a solid "Nope. And please delete my number.""" shSOTO PLYMOUTH FOR FOIL S
    via Shelby Cohron on Unsplash+

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

  • 02
    Have you ever quit a job on a whim? If so, what pushed you over the edge, and how exactly did you go about doing the actual quitting part?
    via u/LittlePinkMoose
  • 03
    merryjerry13 Long ago I worked at Frisch's Big Boy part time and I had an organic chemistry test coming up which I had specifically requested off a month early for the days leading up to it so I could buckle down and put some extra time in.
    via u/merryjerry13
  • 04
    The week prior, another drive-thru worker quit and the manager told me that I had to show up or I'd lose the job. Education before work; I was tired of smelling like fry oil anyway.
    via u/merryjerry13
  • 05
    Soronir I was working maintenance at a travel center / truck stop. It was a dirty job. After about two years the other two maintenance guys were gone and I had all the seniority and experience. After nearly three years I was up to $8.40 an hour. I'd started at $8. They kept hiring new maintenance staff starting out at $9 an hour. Asked for a raise,
    via u/Soronir
  • 06
    which I wasn't going to get. When I had to come to work on Easter, after being there about 10 minutes, I decided f . I'm out. Now I plan to get a CDL and drive trucks.
    via u/Soronir
  • 07
    11Petrichor I worked at a grocery store in my late teens. I finally had enough of the sh there, we were treated very poorly, were not allowed to speak to our coworkers during down times, breaks were done wrong, we had 3 people to a register so if one person was off on money we all got written up, and on top of that, when minimum wage increased my pay didn't so
    via u/11Petrichor
  • 08
    after 3 years I was making less than new hires. I put in a verbal and written two weeks. The day after my last day I was woken up by a call asking me to cover a shift since someone called out. I was shocked considering I wasn't an employee anymore, but in my sleep induced stupor I agreed. After coffee I kicked myself for it. A half hour
    via u/11Petrichor
  • 09
    before the shift started | decided I would rather go see fireworks instead and f them. I got a call 10 minutes in to the show asking where I was and I explained I was watching fireworks since I didn't work there anymore and they could pretty much s k it. Best day of my life.
    via u/11Petrichor
  • 10

    This person's story is incredible... they were just way too ambitious!

    Lazer310 I worked for a big credit card company at the time. They had a promotion going for some new website. If we signed up a customer, we got 50 cents, regardless if the customer cancelled after the trial period. The company and management made a big deal about people getting these, and paid cash to people on the floor. Complete with the
    via u/Lazer310
  • 11
    typical corporate BS, management clapping and trying to be your friend when they deem you do good enough. One day a co worker found a chain of customers that had 40 stores that were eligible for the promotion. He talked to the right person, signed up all 40, and got $20 cash. Clapping, balloons, the works.
    via u/Lazer310
  • 12
    I took the idea one step further. I found a chain that had almost 7000 stores. I called through the company, found the person who was able to make the decision, and signed them up. Boom, $3500 for me right?! Wrong. They never considered someone looking up large accounts, and said it was not allowed.
    via u/Lazer310
  • 13
    I went to the regional VPS office, who happened to be in the same building as me. He knew of the situation, because I had talked to him about it using the "open door policy". Which he was mad about, because apparently open door doesn't mean open door. Anyway, I asked him one last time for the payment. Didn't have to be cash, but I wanted what was owed to me. He declined.
    via u/Lazer310
  • 14
    I went to HR, got verification of the work I had done, and a copy of the promotional material they have given us saying they would pay us 50 cents for each customer signed up. HR stupidly gave it to me no questions asked. I decided right there I was done with this company.
    via u/Lazer310
  • 15
    Went back to the VPS office, told him I have proof of my work, and if I didn't have a check in 7 days, I would sue for much more. Went back to my desk, and my boss asked where I had been for an hour and why I wasn't taking phone calls. I grabbed a box, packed my stuff, without saying a word and stood up. I was going to yell something obscene, but just walked out.
    via u/Lazer310
  • 16
    I got a call 2 days later my check was ready. And a friend told me that as soon as they realized I was serious, they called IT to have all my accounts deactivated, because they thought I would hack in and mess with stuff! tl;dr: You gonna pay what you owe!
    via u/Lazer310
  • 17

    This woman had a moment of clarity and acted on it, we love to see it

    magictravelblog Not my story but my wifes. She had a decent proper career type job in an office of a very large organization. The job itself was fine enough give or take but it made her really unhappy. Stressful, a few individuals. who seemed to enjoy making others unhappy whom she had to deal with regularly, that kind of thing.
    via u/magictravelblog
  • 18
    Dealing with it day after day was really affecting her. We went on holiday overseas. A month, maybe two. I forget. We were both happy and had a good time. We were flying back to Australia from Europe and had to stop in Singapore to change flights. While we were wandering around the airport waiting she switched from happy holiday person to i hate my life, i hate my
    via u/magictravelblog
  • 19
    life and made the decision to find a pay phone, call Australia and quit, which is what she did. I think her boss was pretty surprised to get a call from someone who was still on leave for another day or two.
    via u/magictravelblog
  • 20
    He was even more surprised when she resigned with the sound of the bustling airport in the background. I think having spent some time not thinking about her job made her realize how unhappy it was really making her when she had to go back to it.
    via u/magictravelblog
  • 21
    luveykat I was working in a mom and pop food service store while in college and I quit during our busiest time of the year. The mom part of the ownership (we'll call her Mrs. M) really had it out for me and another girl at the store, always yelling at us about every little thing. One day the other girl did something to really. her off and Mrs. M fired her on
    via u/luveykat
  • 22
    the spot (we were packed with customers at this point, it was really awkward because they could all hear...). I was sure I was next, I held it together for about an hour but when I couldn't anymore I walked up to Mr. M and handed him my apron and told him I was quitting because I couldn't take it anymore and walked out.
    via u/luveykat
  • 23
    It was such a feeling of freedom. That was my first job and every major holiday season (Easter, Christmas, V-day etc) I had worked my bat off pulling regular 12 hours days when needed, working 7 days a week and now I was free for the rest of my Christmas break. About 2 hours after I walked out Mrs. M called me and apologized (something I never heard her do before or
    via u/luveykat
  • 24
    since, even to her husband or kids) and practically begged me to come back. I told her I'd come back and finish up Christmas with them and we'd have to see after that. The best part IMO is that the next day some of my co- workers told me they had all walked out exactly at closing time (even Mr. M) and left
    via u/luveykat
  • 25
    Mrs. M there alone all night completing the orders for the next day, something that took 8 of us until almost midnight some nights. Sweet, sweet Karma. I ended up working there through the rest of college and was never once treated poorly by Mrs. M again. When I'm in town I still go back and visit them.
    via u/luveykat
  • 26
    cheerstothe90s Nothing pushed me over the edge, just the realization that doing finance work at a big firm was as far away from the edge as possible. I left my job simply by going to my manager and saying I was done, and would rather spend my time pursuing other things. My last day was a Friday, the next Tuesday I was on a plane to South America, where I went
    via u/luveykat
  • 27
    backpacking and volunteering for about 4 months. Worked with pumas and jaguar, went ziplining, mountain hiking, jungle exploring, etc. Probably too late to get any views, but if 1 redditor sees this and it helps them make the leap, it's worth the 5 second post.
    via u/luveykat
  • 28
    OM... I was a dishwasher and a waitress for a family owned breakfast place. I busted my a for them for about two years and when I finally got the nerve to ask my boss to make me a full time waitress, he said no because he didn't want to have to hire another dishwasher and I was really good at dishing. But the final straw was when I got called in at 6am after
    via u/0MeganTron0
  • 29
    one of our waitresses quit and was told I would be working 5 days a week on the floor and on the weekends I'd be dishing. When I asked for how long he told me, "Until we find another waitress."
    via u/0MeganTron0
  • 30
    The next morning I called the restaurant and simply said "Hi Blank! It's MeganTron... Yeah I'm not gonna be coming in today.... or ever again. Let blank know for me? Thanks. Bye now. " Best decision I ever made.
    via u/0MeganTron0
  • 31
    NicoleFlax I started my first job at McDonald's last year, a few months in, a group of guys came through the drive-thru late on a Friday night, took a large coke, threw it in my face and sped off. Being only 18, I was shocked, I just stood there crying while my manager did nothing to help me. In between sobs, asked if I could just go home for the night. He told me no. I
    via u/NicoleFlax
  • 32
    asked if we at least had a new shirt or sweatshirt I could wear, (I was totally soaked head to toe) he told me no, and that I needed to shut up and get back to work. The entire restaurant was empty, except for me, the manager and 4 other workers, and it was a really slow night. I was in disbelief that he wouldn't let me go home. I quit on the spot and left a trail of soda from the back of the restaurant all the
    via u/NicoleFlax
  • 33
    way to my car. (The management at this McDonald's was ridiculous, they withheld breaks, didn't do any work, and never stuck up for us when a customer was being r de) I was so happy to finally get out of that h_l-hole.
    via u/NicoleFlax
  • 34
    Lukeybabes Was working on a race team where I was the sole mechanic. And late one night before we had to load up and leave for the track the next day. And The boss/driver comes in and asks me to set the car up in a few certain ways to take some measurements. bear in mind this is after 2 weeks of not racing on the night before and i had spent all of
    via u/Lukeybabes
  • 35
    the 2 weeks rebuilding the car from a crash and doing similar car setups all week because it takes so long. Was already late at this point but just started getting on with it. Literally 5 minutes later he comes in, Him: "have you done it yet?". No I haven't. you just asked me to do it. He flips and says he asked me 2 weeks ago to do it. Ends up in a shouting match where I say no that was another thing he asked
    via u/Lukeybabes
  • 36
    me to do. He was sure that he asked me 2 weeks ago even though he came in and only just explained what he wanted me to do by writing it down and explaining it in detail without any mention to what he said 2 weeks ago. This was after loads of similar circumstances that really just got under my skin.
    via u/Lukeybabes
  • 37
    So I just walked out on him. Really wasn't worth the stress. Every day I was coming home miserable and moaning because something had happened that day that was ridiculous. But that was the this that pushed me over the edge. Next day I got another job just by talking to some guy. I took great pleasure in watching the racing on tv at the weekend and seeing he was doing very very poorly.
    via u/Lukeybabes
  • 38
    [deleted] I walked out on my first serving job because a manager yelled at me in front of my co-workers, the kitchen crew, and some customers. Thing was I hadn't even done what he was accusing me of, another co-worker lied to him saying I had talked sh about him behind his back.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 39
    He was the only manager I actually respected there. He humiliated me and wouldn't hear my side of the story so I left.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 40
    [deleted] When I was a teenager, I was qiute timid and wouldn't say boo to a goose. The owner of the sandwich shop I worked at knew this, and would constantly shout at me and berate me, frequently reducing me to tears over the slightest things. One day, I had bad allergies, but came to work anyway so I didn't get shouted at. I sneezed and
    via u/[deleted]
  • 41
    my nose ran everywhere. She screamed at me constantly, but wouln't let me go home. I served customers with tears running down my face, trying to control the sobs because I couldn't have a minute to myself just to pull myself together. I took off my gloves, took off my apron, and ran out of the door. I ran and ran until my lungs burst.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 42
    [deleted] I've worked part-time at a supermarket when I was 15. The manager was a to basicly everyone that didn't work full-time. Most of the time it went good but when i had to 'mirror' the products (like you pull the products on the shelves forward, so the store looks better) you were supposed to get at least 5 products at front and since I was already 30
    via u/[deleted]
  • 43
    minutes overtime I did only one product to the front. When he checked it, he threw every single non- breakable product on the ground and told me to do it again. 2 shelves of ~8 metres long were empty and everywhere were products laying on the ground. I was like: f this sh and left. quit my job and never came back again
    via u/[deleted]
  • 44
    the day after he called me if I'd like to talk to him, i refused
    via u/[deleted]
  • 45
    THE_LOUDEST_P... I worked as a note fetcher- gatherer guy in a hospital once. It was horrible thanks to the boss, whole lotta things that don't make for interesting reading so I'll gloss over that part. As a temp, I walked up to her in the full knowledge I didn't need to give any notice, and just asked "How much notice do I need to
    via u/THE_LOUDEST_P****
  • 46
    give to leave this role?" When she responded that I didn't need to give any, I simply said "In that case, please accept this as my resignation" and walked out. What I had not thought of was that my shift wasn't to end for another 3 hours, and I had no way of getting home apart from the lift that
    via u/THE_LOUDEST_P****
  • 47
    I was getting at the end of my shift (phone de d, no bus fare. Cue three hours of, successfully, hiding from any of my colleagues (a tall order, since they were roaming the entire hospital. I felt like a complete and utter pleb, which totally overshadowed any shred of awesome I felt from the actual quitting.
    via u/THE_LOUDEST_P****
  • 48
    captaink Had a part time job doing maintenance on copy machines. (University town, back when copy shops were still a thing..) Thing is, I was paid on a "per machine" basis, on the premise that it would only take me 10-15 minutes doing the tasks I was supposed to do.
    via u/captaink
  • 49
    After a while I got good at this and also started doing minor repairs. From that point on, the owner was always asking - very nicely - if I couldn't do this or that, or drop by another store. Ended up with me repairing machines (which sometimes took forever) but would still only get paid the flat fee.
    via u/captaink
  • 50
    One day I came in after a weekend (and a full night of repairs on Saturday) to find out something went haywire with a machine and I was made the culprit for it in front of the whole crew. (Who were genuinely nice people, but believed the boss and gave me the "well, you screwed up, deal with it - routine")
    via u/captaink
  • 51
    I showed the boss the maintenance documentation when he came in that provided evidence I didn't even touch that machine. He wouldn't hear any of it and chewed me out in front of the people in the shop. And bye.
    via u/captaink
  • 52

    These customers were plotting something from the very start

    trickymoo I was 15 or 16 and a waiter at a failing restaurant. I had been working for like 2 weeks and the place saw maybe a grand total of 20 people come in. Two women came in, sat down. They were one of two tables in the whole place. I took their orders. I wrote them down specifically. Lady A wanted a Turkey Club.
    via u/trickymoo
  • 53
    Lady B ordered a Caesar Salad and didn't want olives in it. I wrote that down on my pad "C Salad, no Olive". Everything was smiles and I put in their order. Food came out. I served them. Lady B says she ordered a hamburger. I said, 'Oh my bad. I thought you ordered the salad, my mistake.' I go to take the salad back, and she said
    via u/trickymoo
  • 54
    something like 'well you brought it here, so you should just leave it anyways. but i didnt order it." So its clear that she has no intent of paying for this. I made the mistake of saying 'oh. well when you asked for no olives on something, what was it that you didnt want olives on?' which sent her into instant rage mode, including "how dare you"s
    via u/trickymoo
  • 55
    and accusations and demanding a manager. Owner Mark is right there at my side. Marks been under some stress because of the place sinking rapidly. So she just sits there and badmouths me to my face and him over how outrageous this all is and he's just nodding and 'yes m'am'-ing the entire time.
    via u/trickymoo
  • 56
    She ended it with "This place is probably in such condition because of your incompetent employees" and Mark just quipped back immediately "Yeah, he's pretty stupid." Instantly, I undid my apron. Smiled at Mark. Handed it to him and walked out. He ended up calling my cell like 3 hours later and left a message asking if I was
    via u/trickymoo
  • 57
    going to finish my shift. I texted him back with a solid "Nope. And please delete my number". I think that that place was closed down by liiiike... maybe October. This was in like June. Either case, fugde that lady and fudge Mark for not having his employees backs.
    via u/trickymoo

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