UPDATE: Manager schedules meeting with employee during her PTO, reprimands her when she doesn't show up: 'Her boss called to chastise her for it while we were on vacation'

Author image for Ben Weiss
Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Jul 25, 2025 2:00 PM EDT

This guy's wife had the unfortunate experience of working for someone who did not understand the meaning of time off. When you're planning a vacation, you're setting yourself up to unplug from the pressures of work and other challenging aspects of your weekly routine. Unfortunately, some folks put so much emphasis on how perfect their vacation needs to be that by the time they're actually on the beach, everything seems to fall apart. 

For this author, he had to witness his wife go through a work crisis when she wasn't supposed to be working at all. In fact, her boss was well aware that this was supposed to be her time off. She had prepared everything in advance so that nobody would need her assistance and so that everything would run smoothly in her absence. Then, her boss decided to schedule a last-minute event in her work calendar during her time off, an event that the author's wife wasn't even made aware of because she didn't have access to her work phone and email. Naturally, she missed the meeting, and her boss lost it! 

Keep scrolling through for the full story and stay tuned for the update when she returned to work after her so-called "vacation."

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  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10533785344
    via Unsplash+ (Molly the Cat)

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

  • Could it be possible that her boss was trying to sabotage his employee all along? He knew she was gone. In fact, he approved the days off himself. Why would he schedule a time after she left? Moreover, why would he call the author's wife on her personal cellular device just to give her a hard time? It all seems like he tried (and failed) to demonstrate her incompetence, but thankfully, she was already transferring to a different department at that point. Good luck trying that with someone else, sir!

  • 02
    We recently celebrated a vacation in Mexico. The whole point was to get away for a few days. We had our personal cell phones but left our work cell phones behind. Crazy, right?
    via kindamymoose
  • 03
    At some point during our getaway, her manager called her personal cell phone. My wife didn't answer and came back to it later.
    via kindamymoose
  • 04
    Her boss called to tell her that something had been added to her calendar at the last minute while she was on vacation. She had no visibility to her calendar and no way to know anything was added.
    via kindamymoose
  • 05
    This left the calendar event with no coverage; her boss called to chastise her for it while we were on vacation.
    via kindamymoose
  • 06
    Thankfully, she was able to get back to enjoying our time to ourselves. We got back last Thursday night and worked Friday. Nothing about the calendar event was mentioned Friday or Monday.
    via kindamymoose
  • 07
    She went into work today and was handed a formal reprimand for not having coverage for the calendar event.
    via kindamymoose
  • 08
    She is changing offices in a couple of weeks. It's a longer commute but she will work for a different manager, one who presumably does not have his head up his a
    via kindamymoose
  • 09
    I encouraged her to chat with her manager's manager about this. Neither of us agree that it's fair to be punished for something that happened while out of office,
    via kindamymoose
  • 10
    especially when the manager knew she was out of office. She is reluctant to do so because she wants to leave on good terms.
    via kindamymoose
  • 11
    It honestly infuriates me. This office can't keep employees. My wife works 60-hour weeks in a very stressful environment. She does her absolute best and her mental health has taken a major hit.
    via kindamymoose
  • 12
    Update: She has contacted her manager's boss and is officially challenging the reprimand. (The process will take some time.)
    via kindamymoose
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    Cheezburger Image 10533785088
    via Chen Mizrach

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

  • 14
    diflorus ⚫ I would contact HR and potentially file a complaint. A formal reprimand isn't justified while she is on PTO.
    via kindamymoose
  • 15
    greenlungs604 · • This is complete . Why should your wife pay for the mistake of this idiot manager. She owes it to herself to get this straightened out. If anything it sets a dangerous precedent of idiotic behaviour that is likely to continue.
    via kindamymoose
  • 16
    Yodx. At the very least, definitely push to get that day of PTO back. If they can dictate what you do then you are not on vacation.
    via kindamymoose
  • 17
    hillsfar. I worked for over 20 years for a company, surviving multiple mass layoffs. I was lucky to receive a large severance in accordance with my tenure.
    via kindamymoose
  • 18
    But the company continues. fine without me. Just as we had continued past the previous layoffs that I had survived.
    via kindamymoose
  • 19
    Your wife now knows the leaders of her company are not as loyal to her as she is to them. She is sacrificing the dwindling prime hours of the prime years of her life for money. Act accordingly.
    via kindamymoose
  • 20
    smooth_rebellion • That's absolute b t. I was reprimanded once in a formal review for not "checking in" on a vacation where I had full coverage. I
    via kindamymoose
  • 21
    complained to my manager's manager, said they were lucky I didn't go to HR and left the company a few months later. That is a terrible sign of working at a sweatshop disguised as a corporation.
    via kindamymoose
  • 22
    BiiiiiigStretch ⚫ I feel like this is a good opportunity to CC the manager's manager on a nice email asking for more clarification as to why you were written up.
    via kindamymoose

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workplace-stories employee work stories toxic-workplace job work overworked-employees Horrible Bosses bad bosses company vacation toxic-work-environment
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