Employee grows tired of workplace favoritism, decides to ‘accidentally' break their computer to get time off while entitled coworkers are forced to fill in: ‘We’re expected to work like machines’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Jun 13, 2025 11:00 AM EDT

Dear reader, this is a rare moment in which you will experience a full and honest disclosure from yours truly, so you better soak it all up while you can. 

I am (checks work counter) 200 words away from the weekend, after which I am going on a week-long vacation to Greece, so overall, I don't really want to work at the moment. I want to shut off my brain and disappear until next Monday, without having to think about memes, offices, workplaces, or, you know, words in general.

But like many employees, I must finish my duties before I sign off, so here I am, doing the job, typing away, and making sure you are entertained (you are entertained, right?).

However, unlike me, the faithful and hardworking employee, when some people reach a certain breaking point, they would do anything to get out of work. They would find loopholes, lie, and cheat; everything but do the job they were hired to do. And even though I could never do that, I still understand those who can. Like the employee in the story below, who was so overworked and burned out that they resorted to purposely getting their laptop to crash so they could get a few days off.

Justified? You will be the judge of that…

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    Cheezburger Image 10516698880
    via Jornada Produtora

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

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    Tired of being the workhorse while others chill. So I let my laptop 'accidentally' brick itself during BIOS update

    I work in a high-pressure call center. The way the system works here is deeply unfair. A handful of people who are close to the team leads get special treatment
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    every single day. They get assigned non-call aux statuses, which basically means they don't have to take calls. They literally sit there doing nothing, scrolling on their phones,
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    walking in and out of the floor, or pretending to work while avoiding the core job of actually speaking to customers. Meanwhile, the rest of us? We're forced to take nonstop calls with
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    barely any breaks. It doesn't matter if we're stressed, sick, or mentally exhausted, we're expected to work like machines. It's completely lopsided.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    I've been watching this favoritism happen every day. The same people getting breaks, extra time off, and even work-from- home allowances while we who follow rules, get treated like we don't matter.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    So, yes, over time, that builds a sense of burnout, frustration, and a feeling that the system is rigged. Add to that the fact that we're treated like children.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    We're not even allowed to wear rain ready flippers during the rainy season. If it rains and your shoes get soaked? Too bad. Walk around in wet socks all day...
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    And then they have the nerve to send corporate- wide emails about "taking care during rains." The hypocrisy is just exhausting. Now, to the laptop part. 2 days ago, my work laptop asked for a BIOS update. For
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    anyone unfamiliar, BIOS is like the basic software your computer needs to even start. If you interrupt a BIOS update, the computer becomes unusable. It won't boot into Windows or do
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    anything. It becomes a brick. I knew that. I also knew that IT wouldn't be able to recover anything from it or track what really happened. They'd just have to wipe and reinstall
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    everything, which would take days if that's even possible. And that means I wouldn't be on calls, and finally, I'd get to breathe a little.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    Cheezburger Image 10516699136
    via shironosov

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

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    So yes, when the update started, I intentionally restarted the laptop several times mid-update by holding the power button. I pretended I didn't know better. I'd already told my
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    TL that the system was asking for an update. When it broke, I simply told them I don't know anything beyond logging in with my ID and password. And that's true. From their perspective,
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    I'm not an IT expert. I'm just a call center employee. I don't code. I don't fix machines. So now IT has to take the laptop, reimage it or something idk, and I'm off the phones for a few days.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    Some people may call this "sabotage." But let's be real. When you create a workplace where some people chill all day and others are treated like disposable robots, don't be
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    surprised when people start looking for ways to survive. I didn't do this out of joy or laziness. I did it because I've been pushed to the edge. Not everyone has the luxury to be the boss's favorite. Some of us are just trying to survive this broken system.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    Rhodin265 I think you should use your newly-found free time to job hunt.
    via Rhodin265
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    glenmarshall Your action was in the original spirit of sabotage, where French workers in need of a break threw their wooden shoes (sabots) into a machine. Good for you!
    via glenmarshall
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    MarvinPA83 The IT department don't hold a spare laptop for just such eventualities. How remiss of them.
    via MarvinPA83
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    ImpromptuHotelier OP They do tbh. They will just try every thing possible to make the same laptop work because assigning a new laptop is a nightmare and takes almost 2 weeks if not more sometimes.
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    Priest 1969 It would be better revenge if the lazy people had to step up while you relaxed.
    via Priest1969
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    ImpromptuHotelier OP Thay had to. 3 people were on non available status and had to step in because I couldn't log on and call were waiting. Guess who took calls and who went out to have some chai lattes?
    via ImpromptuHotelier
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    RAME0000000000000000 Good workers get rewarded with more work, remember that.
    via RAME0000000000000000

  • And with that, my job is completed. 

    See you all in Greece!

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Tags

boss workplace-stories employee manager job tales-from-the-workplace coworkers reddit story petty revenge favoritism overworked-employees workplace Reddit company
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