Boss demands remote employee commute ten hours weekly and surrender control over non-work schedule, forcing her to reconsider her future: ‘I feel like if I give in once, it’ll just continue to happen’

Some people see their boss as a mentor, a leader, or maybe even just a person who signs their paychecks. And then there are situations like this, where the boss adopts the role of amateur life guru, dictating class schedules, remote work policies, and how to "succeed"—as if it's all part of some grand workplace enlightenment program.  

Oh, I'm sorry, boss, the academic school year schedule isn't working for you? No problem, let's overhaul the seasons while we're at it. And why stop there? Let's move Christmas to mid-February so it no longer interferes with your year-end reports. 

Know what? I've got a productive idea—split national holidays so half the staff celebrates while the other half works. Better yet, let's assign time zones at a personal level so someone is always on call, no matter what corner of the planet they're on. 

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  • Maybe while we’re being productive, we can redesign the days of the week. Seven is so inefficient. Let’s make it eight so there’s a day specifically for corporate synergy. Perhaps the calendar itself could do with a refresh. Forget months, just implement fiscal quarters as the universal time cycle. And those pesky weekends could be stretched into three half-days so you can recover just enough before being fully available again.  

  • "My boss basically gave me an ultimatum. Do I still give a notice if I don’t want to comply?"

    "My boss wanted to look at my class schedule and tell me what classes to take"
    via fizkes

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

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  • When micromanagement reaches into your personal life and starts fiddling with the universal constants of time and space, it’s clear someone’s power complex has hit its peak. Some things, like class schedules and like, the rotation of the Earth, aren’t up for negotiation.

  • I (22F) work at a pretty small/ local accounting firm. I've known my boss my entire life, and me and his daughter were close in high school. I live in a different town and work remotely while finishing my degree. For
    via khouston576
  • background info, my boss wants me to send my schedule every week to keep me busy and on track. We've butted heads before with how much say he has over my life. For example, he wanted
    via khouston576
  • to look at my class schedule and tell me what classes to take. I've had to tell him that outside of work, he gets no say. This week, his older daughter gave me a phone call to tell me that I needed to be in office at least two days a week going forward. I
    via khouston576
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  • was taken aback and just agreed in the moment. I thought I had messed something up. Upon thinking it over, I couldn't think of anything I had done wrong other than not sending him my schedule this week. I emailed him for clarification. He said that I did
    via khouston576
  • Cheezburger Image 10480924672
    via Anton Estrada

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

  • good work, but I was inconsistent and unreliable because I didn't think it was necessary to send my schedule. He also said that when I don't send my schedule, it causes the firm to scramble to find me things to work on. Mind you, I
    via khouston576
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  • have sent my schedule every week prior to this. Going even further than that, for the past month, my schedule has consistently only had 1-2 things to work on. I emailed him back,
    via khouston576
  • highlighting that I had sent my schedule to him and that it should have been known I would be needing things to work on. He said that I was not sending the schedule in the way we had
    via khouston576

  • So many questions. the first being: why do you think someone would comply?

    Cheezburger Image 10480925184
    via shironosov

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

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  • talked about. He said that they had discussed it and thought this was the only way for me to succeed and for the firm to guarantee they were getting results. He said if I can't make it
    via khouston576
  • work, I would need to look for a different job. I asked if I could take the weekend to think it over. (This happened on Friday) I live 2.5 hours away from the firm. I take in-person classes on Tuesday and Thursday. I would either have
    via khouston576
  • to drop my classes to cut down on travel time or drive 10 hours there and back each week. Anytime I'm in the office he always talks about "when you're in-office permanently" and "when you live in... again". This feels
    via khouston576
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  • like he saw an opportunity to have me in office and jumped on it. That, or a way for me to quit without a wrongful termination threat. Either way, I think it's a thing to do to someone. I
    via khouston576
  • feel like if I give in once, it'll just continue to happen. I'm still young, and I'm 99% sure I'm done. Do I just tell him I'll be in to turn in my things? Or do I still have to give a notice? Any advice helps. Thanks.
    via khouston576
  • Nedstarkclash Your instincts are sound.
    via Nedstarkclash
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  • Method Maven Submit your written, 2 week notice, 2 weeks only; do not listen if they try to extend the duration. Do not return to the office.
    via MethodMaven
  • Instead, get them to send you an itemized list of everything they expect you to return. Put those items in a box, taking photos/video of everything. Then, ship it to them, signature required.
    via MethodMaven
  • Your boss seems to think he is boss/dad... which is creepy-eeww to me. I think minimizing any future time with him/his family is a great idea.
    via MethodMaven
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  • ValleyOakPaper I would give your two week's notice and continue working remotely during that time.
    via ValleyOakPaper
  • Fun Apartment631 Tell him you thought it over and coming in is more onerous than you're prepared to do.
    via Fun_Apartment631
  • Don't quit. You can maintain unemployment eligibility if it's something about conditions of employment. The way things work now, you really shouldn't feel shame about collecting unemployment insurance on occasion.
    via Fun_Apartment631
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  • If he does fire you, see if you can get a work-study job something.
    via Fun_Apartment631
  • bisforbnaynay With there being so much time commuting there's no way continuing to work for him isn't going to impact your studies.
    via bisforbnaynay
  • If you absolutely need a job to fund your studies, maybe consider something more local, because I can see you losing money due to so much time being invested in driving there. As some others suggested, don't give them a timeline until your situation is confirmed, then give them what notice you can.
    via bisforbnaynay
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