Boss emails new employee at 11:27 PM to tell them to come in at 7 AM for their first day: 'Completely unreasonable'

Author image for JR Atkinson
JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor
Jul 27, 2025 10:00 AM EDT

I'm a believer in ceasing your communication at some points in the day. Back in the good ole days before electricity, if someone needed to reach you, they had to send a letter, and that letter would take days/weeks/months to reach you, and then you would read it at your leisure before responding when you felt like it. This is a comfortable pace of communication. A far cry from the constant, minute-to-minute communication that we have now between messaging, Slack, FaceTime, and what have you. It can be exhausting to constantly be in touch with one another. 

But we can microdose that energy by simply turning off our phones after a certain hour. If someone needs to reach you, they can get you the next day during your business hours. But the problem with that is that not everyone respects those kinds of boundaries. Especially bosses.

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  • 01

    Boss emails me at 11:27pm to come in at 7am for my first day.

    I've had a super rough time getting into this company. Long draw out hiring process, hr not responding to emails, jumping through hoops to be able to get in asap, everything under the sun.
    via u/No_Boysenberry4322
  • 02
    Cheezburger Image 10534239744
    via Unsplash+ (Curated Lifestyle)

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

  • That's what happened in this story, where a new employer crossed a line communication-wise and put off their new hire in the process. After a grueling interview and hiring process, the last thing this employee could have expected was a late-night call to arrive the next day at the crack of dawn. Read on to see what happened. 

  • 03
    Today was my new hire orientation, like an online thing. In the meeting I was told my management should have gave me a schedule/talked to me about the next steps about a week ago. I called my HR rep she said she would call my director and get her to let me know what's up and
    via u/No_Boysenberry4322
  • 04
    she must have forgot. I waited all day today. 20 minutes ago at 11:27pm she responds via email and tells me to be there at 7am tomorrow. No oh sorry, no let me know if this works, no nothing. Straight shot it. I live an hour away.
    via u/No_Boysenberry4322
  • 05
    This is completely unreasonable right? I can't believe this is such a well respected company and I've just had the worst time and hate it already and I haven't even started yet. Thoughts?
    via u/No_Boysenberry4322
  • 06
    Cheezburger Image 10534247680
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

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

  • 07

    Commenters agreed that this was a major red flag.

    Custo... . 2d ago • Edited 2d ago Resume your job search immediately. [edited to add] and work there until you find another.
    via u/CustomerSecure9417
  • 08
    Counther 2d ago • I'll add my vote here: Completely unreasonable. And if you answer it tonight, she'll think emailing you at 11:30 and expecting an answer is fine. Your plan to say "you just saw the email and will get ready and head in, but just a heads up you have an hour commute" is exactly the right thing to do.
    via u/Counther
  • 09
    LargeCaterpillar3819 • 2d ago I wouldn't expect my team to read emails at 11:30 at night! Can you reply in the morning. and say you just saw the email and will get ready and head in, but just a heads up you have an hour commute? That's very inconsiderate of her!!
    via u/LargeCaterpillar3819
  • 10
    • MasterAnthropy · 2d ago Well OP sounds like you kinda need a job at the moment and still harbour some hope that this is a good fit - so go in when asked and see what happens. One night of sub-optimal rest is a decent price to see if this is as much of a dumpster fire as it seems.
    via u/MasterAnthropy
  • 11
    How they deal with this will be telling so pay attention & take those rose tinted glasses off. Up to you how much BS you're willing to accept but know that of onboarding is a mess there's a good chance the rest of the administration is equally dysfunctional (barring some extenuating circumstance).
    via u/MasterAnthropy
  • 12
    Obviously still keep looking and interviewing for something better. If and when it comes time to leave on short notice you can simply state that it wasn't a good fit and point to the current situation (and your willingness to adjust) ad a potential reason. Keep us updated & good luck.
    via u/MasterAnthropy
  • 13
    Bearjupiter 2d ago First day. Just do it. You can manage them later once you get settled.
    via u/Bearjupiter
  • 14
    Living-Hyena184 • 2d ago . "I'm sorry, I was in bed at 10:00pm last night. once I get ready I'll head in. Thanksmmkbye".
    via u/Living-Hyena184
  • 15
    Successful-Dark9879 · 2d ago • Its your first day, go in at 7am to make a good impression. If that continues to be normal then high tail out of there, but its likely a one off from a busy director who forgot to let you know earlier.
    via u/Successful-Dark9879
  • 16
    • PositiveAtmosphere13 · 2d ago Was it an in intentional test? They want to see how you react.
    via u/No_Boysenberry4322
  • 17
    . One_Bat8206 · 2d ago Start planning your exit now. I've had similar experiences with companies who couldn't even get onboarding right. Turned out to be sh companies to work for.
    via u/One_Bat8206
  • 18
    Significant_Soup2558 2d ago This is completely unprofessional and a massive red flag about the company's management culture. Expecting someone to reorganize their entire next day with zero notice shows no respect for your time, sleep schedule, or basic human decency.
    via u/Significant_Soup2558
  • 19
    The pattern you're describing suggests systemic organizational problems rather than isolated incidents. Poor communication, unresponsive HR, disorganized onboarding, and now last-minute scheduling demands all point to a company that doesn't value employees or operate with basic professional standards.
    via u/Significant_Soup2558
  • 20
    You have every right to push back professionally. Reply acknowledging the email but requesting reasonable notice for future scheduling changes. Something like "I can make it work for tomorrow, but going forward, I'd appreciate at least 24 hours notice for schedule changes to ensure I can arrange my commitments accordingly."
    via u/Significant_Soup2558
  • 21
    You can use a service like Applyre to continue with a passive job search. Companies that treat new hires this poorly rarely improve once you're established. Document these issues because they're likely indicators of broader workplace dysfunction that could affect your job satisfaction and professional growth long-term.
    via u/Significant_Soup2558
  • 22
    rideadove. 2d ago "I was asleep getting ready for my first day of work and didn't see the email until I woke up in the morning. I live an hour away and could not make it in by 7 AM, sorry." Major red flag and only a glimpse of what's to come. Don't get taken advantage of from the very start.
    via u/rideadove
  • 23
    MEMExplorer • 2d ago It's only gonna get worse from here on out. Clearly this manager has zero respect for boundaries and is terrible at time management. If you're gonna show up, make your first stop HR and show them the time stamp on that email and ask them if that's acceptable in their eyes to be emailing people time critical information at almost midnight.
    via u/MEMExplorer
  • 24
    Coz I guarantee you there will come a day where this manager "forgets" about a deadline and will be emailing you and calling you late at night and asking you to come in at the crack of dawn to work on some nonsense report that he/she forgot about.
    via u/MEMExplorer
  • 25
    Realistic-Drag-8793 2d ago So you have a lot of red flags here. On one side it could be that this company and director are in dire need of help and buried. You might be that help. So this could just be a way to get you in and then hopefully you can help and it will be a normal place. I have had that one time where the hiring process and upper upper management wasn't great but the job was.
    via u/Realistic-Drag-8793
  • 26
    On the other side, if this person feels comfortable emailing you at 11 at night and wanting you to read and act on it? This could very well be a sign of what is expected once you start. So what would I do? Well I don't know your situation, but I would start the job, respond to the director and let them know you
    via u/Realistic-Drag-8793
  • 27
    saw the email by chance this time but that was a miracle. You are normally in bed way before 11 and would have gotten up to be there before 8:00am and not have seen it. Then I would either start looking for another job or if this turned out to be a one time thing, just work hard at my job.
    via u/Realistic-Drag-8793
  • 28
    Willing_Coconut4364 2d ago • Wake up at 8am and reply with, sorry I just woke up.
    via u/Willing_Coconut4364
  • 29
    IvanThePohBear · 2d ago . how badly do you need this job don't f your first day if you really want it
    via u/IvanThePohBear

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boss antiwork workplace-stories toxic-workplace job bosses work coworkers working reddit story toxic-boss workplace reddit thread bad bosses Reddit toxic-work-environment
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