Micromanager demands to know where employees are at all times by forcing them to report every move on a board, they take it one step too far: ‘Needless to say the board was very short-lived’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Mar 5, 2025 9:00 PM EST

We will never be able to understand managers who need to know what their employees are doing in every given moment throughout the work day.

How can they think that giving their employees a sense that they cannot be trusted, or treating them like literal children will make them better at their jobs? What good does it do, other than feeding into the manager's lack of confidence or self-esteem?

The best managers or bosses we've ever worked with are those who showed us they trust us to do our jobs like we're paid to do. Those are the only managers we even felt happy working with, and who gave us actual motivation and will to make them truly proud. It's not a lot to ask, but for some reason managers like these are very rare. So if you have one of those, make sure to hold on to them.

The employees in the story below are not going to hold on to their manager, especially not after the stunt they pulled to get her to ease off of her micromanaging.

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  • It all started when the manager, like any other terrible micromanager, decided she wanted to know what her employees are doing at all times. She decided to do that by forcing them to write on a public board when they leave their desks, and why.

    This led the annoyed employees to go into excruciating details about every visit they take to the restroom, giving the manager exactly what she asked for.

    Keep scrolling to read the rest of the tale!

  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10476356864
    via shironosov

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

  • 02

    "So you want us to sign in/sign out whenever we have to leave the area? Cue malicious compliance"

    This also happened a long time ago when I worked for a major financial institution. TL:DR Manager wanted us to sign in and sign out on a board whenever we left our desk. Cue
    via mouse_g_23
  • 03
    malicious compliance that resulted in board to be taken away. This story is not quite as detailed as my last story. It involves the same manager and department that I worked in for the last story.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 04
    Manager decided that she needed to track where we were at all times. Therefore, she put up a white board with all our names on it with columns for sign out time, sign in time and
    via mouse_g_23
  • 05
    she wanted us to put a reason why we left our desk. I am sure you probably have an idea as to where this is going.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 06
    It started out simply enough, I needed to go ask someone in another department a question (we didn't have our own dedicated phones, just one phone for each department). I,
    via mouse_g_23
  • 07
    like the good girl I am put the time I walked out of the department and who I went to see. When I got back, she was waiting for me and told me quite
    via mouse_g_23
  • 08
    loudly that I didn't put in WHY I had to go see that person and that, going forward I needed to be more detailed in why I had to leave my desk. She made sure it was in front of the entire team.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 09
    Cue my malicious compliance. I had to use the restroom, so I walked up to the board put in the time I was leaving and in the reason I put that I was going to the restroom and that I would be
    via mouse_g_23
  • 10
    ating and defeating while I was there. I walked out of the department and went to do my business. My manager had stepped out to attend meeting at the time.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 11
    Well, little did I know that my team had my back and they all went to the board and signed out and put that they were going to the restroom with varying detailed reasons as to
    via mouse_g_23
  • 12
    what they were going to do while they were in the restroom. When I got out of the restroom all my team members were there waiting for me.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 13
    We walked back into the department together just in time see our manager standing in front of the board with one of her peers as they had both been in the same meeting.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 14
    The look on their faces was absolutely priceless. Needless to say the board was very short lived.
    via mouse_g_23
  • 15
    Cheezburger Image 10476357120
    via CadoMaestro

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

  • 16
    dogismywitness I liked both your posts today! Both post number one and post number two.
    via dogismywitness
  • 17
    Riskydogtowel I got fired for doing something like this. They tried to not pay me unemployment. Guess who won? Me. I did what they asked. Idiots
    via Riskydogtowel
  • 18
    CatlessBoyMom Time 11:36 Going to: restroom Reason: got s' to do
    via CatlessBoyMom
  • 19
    rayogata Sign out: 12:30pm. Reason: going to lunch (taco bell). Sign in: 1:30pm. Sign out: 1:36pm. Reason: bathroom (see previous sign out for more info)
    via rayogata
  • 20
    elidoloLWO I hate your manager so much.
    via elidoloLWO
  • 21
    Lady Havoc97 You are a gem! That manager, however... isn't.
    via LadyHavoc97

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Tags

boss workplace-stories micromanager employee manager job malicious compliance tales-from-the-workplace reddit story ceo workplace Reddit company malicious compliance reddit funny
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